Heroines of Light
by Gryffindor-RikkuChan
Summary: What if Kairi was the Keyblade's chosen master, and she travels to worlds with a flower girl, Aerith, and a court witch, Hermione, to find her friends, but still came from Hallow Bastion? SK HHr Cloirth RK
1. Prologue

This is a story idea I came with Ghost in the Mirror, Sora is Kairi, Goofy is Aerith Gainsborough, and Donald Duck is Hermione Granger. I made videos on those girls, I'll put the links up soon. Enjoy the prologue!

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Prologue The voice that calls

"_I've been having…these weird thoughts lately…Like…is any of this…for real? Or not?"_

She felt this strange sensation of falling into an abyss.

It was cold.

It was dark.

It felt like…like she was falling into the depths of the ocean.

She leaned back, letting go, allowing herself to continue to drift away. She was falling faster now. The sensation was incredible, unreal, words could not describe it. The air that rushed over her skin was ice cold and soothing. It felt like freezing water, but at the same time like cold air. And the freedom that went with that feeling was amazing. The teen found the experience exhilarating and ethereal, when suddenly, it stopped. Just like that, it stopped.

The teen's bright blue eyes spanned open, and there was suddenly a flash of brilliant light. There, before her, was an expanse of ocean. Her sneakers were digging into the beach sand as the waves withdrew from the shore just inches in front of her toes. She was standing in front of an ocean; behind her was Destiny Islands…her home for the last six years. But hadn't she just been falling into what seemed like the ocean? The teen had to shield her eyes from the bright midday sunlight, though it didn't take long for her eyes to adjust to the sudden change of setting.

There was someone standing in the water. The teen squinted her eyes at the figure. Shoulder length sliver hair, very tall, somewhat tanned skin. He was strong, the muscles on his arms proved it. The girl recognized him. Wasn't that…? Riku? The teen grinned mischievously. It was the prefect opportunity to play a trick on him. She took a step forward, ready to charge to at her friend. But when she took her step into the water, there was no water beneath her foot. She hadn't heard the splash of water underneath her sneaker, nor had she felt it. The girl checked to see if she was simply imaging things. No…It seemed like the water was receding away…From her!

Just then, her eyes caught on something. It was…a tidal wave! Going straight for Riku! Riku could see it as clear as day; it was barely twenty yards in front of him, huge, and coming fast. Yet he paid no mind to it. And then, as if someone had called his name, Riku turned around to face the teen standing on the shores of the ocean and stared at her with knowing blue eyes. He looked as though he was smiling as he extended his right hand to his friend.

The teen charged into the water, one hand extended to grab her companion to save him from the tidal wave, which were now just a few feet behind him. The tip of the wave curled into itself as it hit shore. She knocked back by the powerful wave, and found herself pushed under the water, despite how shallow it had been earlier. It had swallowed both the teen and Riku, but Riku looked as though the water hadn't touched him. He was still standing, exact in the same position as before the wave had hit. He opened his hand even more, extending it to his friend. Didn't she want Riku's help?

She struggled against the water current, still trying desperately grab to Riku's open hand, when the current suddenly grew stronger and she was thrown backwards, flipping and spinning. She attempted to yell out, but only ended up with mouth full of water. Her eyes were forced shut and her lungs began to burn with the need for air. When she managed to open her eyes, the midday sun had been replaced by orange sunset. She thrust her head up out of the water, gasping for air, shaking the water out of her short straight dark pinkish red hair. After a brief moment, the teen came to her senses and tired to regain her bearing. She was still in the ocean in front of Destiny Islands.

"Kairi! Kairi! Over here, Kairi!"

Kairi turned in the direction of the voice that was calling her name. There on the beach was a boy with spiky brown hair and bright blue eyes, waving and calling her name with a beautiful wide smile across his face. He was completely bathed in the orange tint of the setting sun. He wouldn't stop screaming her name. Kairi grinned and waved back at him just as happily.

"Sora!"

She hurried over toward him, pulling herself through orange gleaming waves to reach him. Sora only continued to giggle and smile. As she reached the shoreline, Kairi looked at him, somewhat breathless, yet managing to give him her best grin. Sora couldn't help but laugh at the goofy smile on her face, throwing his head back slightly. His smile suddenly faded as he blinked in confusion, his attention shifting skyward. There was something in the sky. And no, he wasn't being a ditz upon seeing his first cloud. There was _something in the sky. _The expression on his face caught Kairi by surprise and she looked into the sky to what he was looking at.

Early shooting stars glimmered against the fiery sky; making shadows and highlights on something that was falling. Sora gasped at the sight, as Kairi blinked in disbelief. What in the world was falling? Kairi squinted and adjusted her eyes to make out the features of the object. Was it…? Yes, it was a person! Kairi looked even harder at it. It wasn't just any person…It was her!

Kairi's blue eyes widened at the sudden realization, and she suddenly had the sensation of falling, as though the ground beneath her was simply given way. Sora turned to look at her, gasping. She was falling! But how could it be? She was standing on the beach, next to Sora, and he wasn't falling. She looked up, or rather, down, trying to see where she would land, but there was no ground in sight. She then turned to Sora, extending a hand, pleading for his help. But he could do nothing more than reach for her. It was as though he was standing on some invisible platform that had him nailed down. Kairi opened her mouth and began to shout his name, but nothing escaped her throat. And then, much to her shock, the image of Sora vanished, broken by a ripple as though he had been nothing more than a reflection on the surface of the water.

She leaned back. She knew at this point that it was no use to cry for help. Nothing could reach her out here, falling into the sunset. Is it a dream? Suddenly, in a flash of light, Kairi found herself surrounded by a great blue, as though she was right back where she'd started, falling into what seemed like the ocean. She spun and twirled through water-like atmosphere, falling headfirst until her legs grew heavy, and when she opened her eyes (with some effort) she found herself flipping right-side up. Her feet touched ground.

Kairi looked around. Nothing but darkness, not a soul in sight. No Riku, nor Sora. Kairi summoned up all her courage she took a brave step forward, and as she did so, a blinding came up from below her. She had to shield her eyes as the darkness she was standing on broke away and flew off. Kairi looked at the piece of blackness that were flying away, and realized that those creatures were not dark fragments. They were birds. They were doves, to be more exact. Kairi gasped at them, their white feathers drifting downward all around her. Until finally, they had all fluttered deeper into the blackness that surrounded her.

Kairi turned her head slightly to the right, so she was looking over her shoulder, then looked straight ahead of her once again. She was truly all by herself. She was on a small circular platform that seemed to be floating in the darkness. There was picture of a boy with spiky blonde hair in a purple top holding a large sword spread across it, and all around him were the faces of seven different people, each of which to express different power or weapon.

But Kairi wasn't interested in the giant picture. She wanted to know where she was-and she wanted to know right and then. She ran one hand through her short straight dark pinkish red hair. What to do…? Suddenly, Kairi heard a voice-it seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once…Perhaps it came from within her. Wherever it had come from, it caused the teen to look back over her right shoulder. She tried to follow the voice, slowly moving her head from the right side and to the left in an attempted to pinpoint the voice's source…

_So much to do…So little time…Take your time._

Kairi was at a loss. Take her time? But there was only "so little time", wasn't there? She found herself confused and almost frightened by this series of events. What in the world was happening!

_But don't be afraid. The door is still shut._

The door? What door?

_Now, step forward. Can you do it?_

For a moment, she wasn't sure if she could. Her feet suddenly felt extremely heavy, as if she had grown roots and was suddenly stuck to the spot. Kairi looked around for a while, wondering if she ought to obey the strange voice. Then, swallowing hard, she lifted her white Converse sneaker up off the ground and took a step forward. Then another. And another. The belt that dangled around her waist jumped as she moved, and her necklace, with the dark red stone piece and gold bead, a gift from Sora when she arrived, rocked back and forth with her movement. She managed to cross over to the center of the platform and stood still, as though awaiting further instructions from the strange voice.

_Power sleeps within you_

Suddenly, a beam of light appeared on her right. Kairi turned her head to look at it, and it that was a stone tablet bearing a red shield had risen up from the part of the floor that the light had touched.

_If you give it form…_

Kairi spun around just in time to see another beam of light fall upon the surface of the platform to her left, and saw another stone tablet had appeared, this time bearing a green wand bearing a blue symbol on its top. A lion, standing on its hind legs, looking ready to attack. She then noticed that the shield bore the same symbol.

…_It will give you strength._

Yet another beam of light had appeared and summoned yet another stone tablet from the depths of the flooring. Kairi turned her head. This one had appeared right in front of her. This stone tablet held a broad sword with a gold and blue hilt. All three objects spun around in place just above the stones. Kairi looked at each item, baffled, when the voice came once more.

_Choose well._

After a moment's hesitation and thought, Kairi stepped toward the platform that held the sword. She pulled herself up onto the platform and took the sword into her hands. Upon further inspection, Kairi saw a small red circle on the hilt, and inside it was the symbol of the lion that she'd seen on the other items. She stared at the sword in awe, her blue eyes wide in wonder. It felt good in her hands. Like she was born to wield it.

_The power of the warrior. Invincible strength. A sword of terrible destruction…Is this the power you seek?_

Kairi looked up into the blackness, still hoping the owner of the voice would reveal himself. After a moment of empty silence and darkness, she looked back at the sword in her hands and nodded "yes" in reply. The sword instantly vanished from her hands, breaking up into lights as though it had made of fireflies. She was alarmed to feel strength flow into her, her body was absorbing the light of the sword!

_Your path is set. Now…what will you give in exchange?_

She slowly turned around to look at the remaining two items: the shield and the wand. "Give up"…? She had to give up one of those in exchange of her newfound power? Kairi jumped from the platform that once held the sword and looked at each of the items. What to give up? She started for the shield, but stopped when she reached the center of the platform. No. Who wanted to be strong and weak all at the same time? She had no choice. Her eyes drifted from the shield to the wand. She swallowed hard and walked toward it. She pulled herself onto the platform and, looking sadly at the item before her. She had decided. Gently took the wand into her hands.

_The power of the mystic. Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin. You give up this power?_

The wand seemed to be nothing short of amazing in itself. It had a very simple design, which would probably make it not only useful for magic, but for bashing things with as well. Her fingers fiddled with the blue lion head at the top as she tore her eyes away from the wand and looked back into the darkness. Once again, Kairi nodded. Similar to the sword, the wand broke into lights, and the teen watched silently as the lights wicked out one by one-she was not absorbing them this time around.

_You have chosen the power of the warrior. You've given up the power of the mystic. Is this the form you choose?_

She had to wonder why the strange voice kept saying aloud what her choice had been. But once again, she nodded her approval. Yeah. That sounded pretty good. Kairi turned on her heel, awaiting further orders from the voice. Yet as she waited for the voice, there was a large jolt that almost knocked her off the grey platform. She looked down at her feet and realized the platform was sinking into the stained glass image.

There was another jolt, and Kairi tumbled from the stone tablet onto the colored glass. She stood up quickly, realizing that the glass, too, was shattering. The pieces flew up around her and vanished into the darkness. Kairi hoped briefly that she wouldn't fall, but when the glass broke beneath her, she was disappointed to find her hopes false.

She ended up falling with quite impressive speed. There was no light around; she was engulfed in the darkness. Where had she been taken? Kairi didn't think she'd ever find out. She must be dreaming. But this felt so real…And it was lasting longer than any dream she'd ever had before. So…what was happening to her?

Her hair was fluttering about wildly into her majestic blue eyes as she plummeted further into the darkness. Kairi's eyes strained to catch the glimmer of light that wasn't going to come for awhile. The darkness seemed to last forever-which was bad news for her. Most people her age probably didn't agree, but she thought that darkness, whether it be just the dark of night or the deeper darkness of, well, this place, for example…It just seemed to hold some kind of evil.

Suddenly, like a ray of hope, Kairi's eyes managed to catch onto something that glowed a brilliant blue. She gazed at it intently, as though it was her savior. She eventually realized that it was another platform, just like the one before. It, too, had a boy painted upon it like the stained glass windows of churches she'd seen in books. But this boy had brown hair, and wore black clothes. And in place of the seven people, she saw pictures that seemed to tell some kind of story-it had something to do with a girl and some special kind of power.

After a moment, Kairi's feet touched the sooth surface, and everything she'd noticed was forgotten. A sword had appeared in her hands, almost instantaneously. She examined it carefully, and discovered that it was the very sword she'd chosen on the other platform. She checked it again. Yes, it had the lion on it.

_You've gained the power to fight. Take a swing._

Kairi had almost completely forgotten about the voice. It had surprised her and she jumped back a bit, but once the surprise had faded away, she did as she was told. She took the sword in both hands and swung it around, like she did with her wooden sword often.

_Use this power to protect yourself and others._

As if she couldn't figure that out for herself. Kairi almost laughed aloud. Her cheery grin, however, was wiped away when a dark spot appeared on the platform. She spun around in place to face it and leaned forward, examining it, watching a strange black like-creature that was taking shape with ever so curious blue eyes. What was it? Was it dangerous? Would it hurt her?

_There will be times you have to fight._

As Kairi watched, another spot emerged, and ever more amazing was that the creature had risen out of its two-dimensional form and stood before her. By this she was aback, and unwittingly took a small step backward. Looked like one of those times. Kairi clenched the sword in both hands and watched, her blue eyes wide in shock.

_Keep your light burning strong._

Suddenly, the creature jumped at her in an attempt to attack. Kairi leapt back, and then ran around to the side so she was directly behind it; and then took three good swings at the creature. The creature exploded into black mist with her third swing. The other, similar creatures flattened themselves into the floor and vanished. Kairi spun around several times, checking, making sure there was no more shadow creatures.

_Behind you!_

The voice had caught her off guard again. Kairi spun around so quickly to face the shadow that approached her that she almost slipped. She swung the sword wildly before her, and to her great luck, the blade struck the shadow in what appeared to be its chest, making the creature vanished with explosion of darkness. Only one was left now. Kairi struggled to regain her footling, turning around fiercely and glaring at the monster. She was about ready to attack it when the creature flattened itself into the floor, vanishing into a dark blotch that formed beneath it.

Kairi were aback by the black patch's sudden appearance. A rumbling noise. Kairi's head snapped in the direction it had come from. Her eyes went wide as she saw more of the dark blotches. They were spreading across the platform. Within moments, more of the large dark blotches began to appear on the blue glass-like surface. First near the circular rim, and then everywhere. Spreading, like a disease. Kairi looked down near her feet. These dark patches…they were everywhere! All around them! For the first time, a sad expression appeared across Kairi's face as she realized with dismay that she couldn't move. Not because her body wouldn't obey her, but because if she did, she would step into darkness…And who knew what would happen if she did that?

Either way it didn't matter; the dark void appeared right under their feet. Kairi immediately sank into the darkness, and they gasped in shock as they did so. That's when everything seemed to move in slow motion. This shadow…This darkness…It was like quicksand, expect for the texture…It was like ice-cold air pulling at her skin, pulling her into some cold, dark void.

It felt cold. It felt wrong. It felt…evil.

She couldn't stand it. While the stuff was crawling up to her waist, Kairi tried to lift herself out of it, tried to pull herself toward what was left of the glowing blue platform, tried to grab hold of something-anything-that could help her.

The darkness was up to her neck now. Kairi threw up a hand, hoping that someone would grab her and pull her back to where it is safe…

Swallowing her face. Kairi's blue eyes went wide in terror as the last of her vanished.

She struggled as though her life depended on escaping that darkness, her eyes shut tight and her breath held as though that would help repel the evil the darkness held. But after a moment, Kairi gasped for air, her eyes opening wide and her hands grabbing the nearest object in her reach. She was grateful to find her hand press against a smooth, glass-like surface, and see a soft blue glow out of the corner of her eye. She looked around cautiously, and then slowly rolled onto her stomach, happier than ever to find that she'd ended up on another platform.

This one, however, did not have distant image of a boy on it. This platform had three blue hearts on it, each of which showed a white silhouette of a boy, the same boy in all three hearts. Who he was and what his story was, Kairi would probably never know. There was nothing else on this stained glass platform, save a beam of light coming out of the seemingly endless darkness, coming out at an angle. Kairi followed the light with her eyes and saw what it was pointing at. There, jotting out of the surface of the platform, just in front of her eyes, was a large arched door.

Kairi stood up and walked around the door, examining it, and the stopped right in front of it. It had a beautiful ornate pattern all over it: around the handles, on the edge, where the double doors met…It seemed to be somehow important, though Kairi couldn't exactly pinpoint how so. It didn't seem to lead anywhere-just to the other side of itself. It was slightly transparent, but it was standing there. She placed both hands on the door's surface and pushed.

'_I can't open it…'_

She folded her arms and placed one hand thoughtfully under her chin. Now what? There was nothing else here, right? Kairi turned herself around, and noticed that another beam of light had appeared. She followed the light column down to where it met the platform, and saw a peculiar red chest that had appeared. Baffled, she walked toward the chest and knelt next to it. Kairi opened the chest, only to find whatever had inside vanished. It left only a few twinkles of light behind in the chest. She sighed and closed it again, then stood and looked at the door. And when she did so, she gasped in surprise.

It was no longer transparent. Kairi blinked in confusion. But…how…? She walked back to it, but before she could lay her hands on it, she heard a strange noise coming from within. She took a few steps back. If anything was coming out of there, she didn't want to get in its way. Then it was silent. Kairi looked at the door again, starting from the bottom to the top. What was happening? Then the double doors began to part, ever so slowly.

A bright white light was emitted from within, so powerful she had to shield her eyes from it. The door opened itself wide, inviting Kairi to enter. She looked down at the floor, and then slowly raised her eyes upward to the light, allowing her eyes adjust to the brightness of it. She then began to step toward it. Kairi leaned forward as she walked, curious now as to what was creating the light, or what the light was hiding. But the light grew stronger and stronger, until it finally had swallowed her up within.

After a moment, Kairi could hear the sound of water rushing up onto shore. When she reopened her eyes, she found herself back on the island, up on one of the wooden platforms that had been built in the trees. She looked around in confusion. What was she doing back here? Had she woken up from this dream? If so, why did she found herself still standing? Was it possible to fall asleep standing? Kairi found herself hoping beyond hope that she'd finally manage to wake up.

_Hold on. The door won't open just yet. First, tell me more about yourself._

Nope. Kairi sighed in dismay. The presence of that voice…It meant she was still in this…this bizarre dream world. Kairi looked up from the floor, and gasped when she saw the girl sitting on the wooden railing. She was stretching her limbs and yawning as though she had just woken up from a good nap and swinging her legs playfully back and forth. She recognized the way her auburn hair swung outward, and her green eyes, and her yellow dress. Yes, Kairi knew her. She smiled and stepped forward to greet her, when she suddenly turned to look at her. Kairi was shocked at the hardness and wisdom she saw in her young green eyes.

"What's most important to you?" she asked, her voice crystal clear.

Kairi stared back at her, hoping to see her break. But it never happened. Kairi sighed, surrendering. She didn't even have to think about the answer to that question. "Friendship."

"Is friendship such a big deal?" The girl's expression didn't change as she looked away.

A strange sense of panic washed over her. She began to back up quickly, but in doing so almost flipping over the edge of the platform and fell into the water. Kairi grabbed onto the edge of the platform and pulled herself back up onto it. As she tried to catch her breath, she saw a pair of sandals just inches away from her nose. Kairi raised her head up to find another one of the kids she recognized from the island. The boy was dark sandy blonde hair, wearing a short white and yellow shirt and blue shorts that were longer on one leg than the other. He had the same hardness and wisdom in his face as the girl.

"What are you so afraid of?" he asked, his voice also ringing out as clear as day.

She looked at the boy before her as though he was crazy. Kairi had to wonder if these were really the friends she knew, or just images that the strange voice had pulled from her memory. It didn't matter. The voice _had_ said to tell him more about herself. Kairi sighed in defeat, but she had to think about this question. She wasn't sure what her fear was.

"Being…being indecisive."

"Being indecisive? Is it really that scary?" He looked away after that, just like the girl had.

It was as if Kairi held nothing of interest to them, or if they didn't want anyone to see them talking to her. And it was scaring Kairi beyond belief. Kairi hesitantly moved backward. She had this place memorized. She knew all the pathways, the trees, docks, the plants…the whole island by heart. So she headed straight for the way off the platform, but instead bumped into another one of her friends from the island.

This one was pretty tall, with hair that seemed loaded with gel to keep it vertical. He was fiddling around with something similar to a volleyball, spinning it around on one finger and watching its movement intently. However when Kairi bumped into him, the boy's attention turned from his ball to Kairi's nervous figure. As Kairi was about to apologize for bumping into him, the boy spoke, his voice just as loud and clear as the two kids before him.

"What do you want outta life?" he asked, somewhat causally.

By now, Kairi had decided it was best not to argue with the voice's will. The quickest way to get out of this dream, this nightmare, this premonition, was probably to answer all the questions. Kairi straightened so she was looking straight into the boy's eyes, and tried to think without flinching. It took her a while, but she finally came up with an answer.

"To see rare sights."

"To see rare sights, huh?" It looked like the kid was going to laugh at her answer, and to Kairi's extreme surprise, the boy didn't look away as though he'd lost interest. This boy lingered amusedly on Kairi's face, until finally turning away as though he had to go off and laugh by himself. Kairi almost grew angry, and was about to step forward to smack him one, when she found that her feet was glued to the floor.

_Your adventure begins at midday._

The voice!

_Keep a steady pace and you'll come through fine._

Kairi grew confused. What was that supposed to mean? Midday? Her adventure?

_The day you will open the door is both far off and very near._

The door? Did it mean the door that she'd seen on the other platform? The one that she was now allowed to enter? Kairi was suddenly blinded by a great white light, and stumbled forward as she waited for it to dim. When it did, Kairi found herself somewhere else, on another one of those stained glass platforms that floated in darkness. Kairi's footsteps became steady as she crossed the platform. She examined the image on the surface.

Another boy…with short blonde hair in thief clothes. He seemed to be crying, but was surrounded by angel feathers. Kairi moved across, still examining the picture, when a beam of light shot down onto the boy's face. Kairi looked up to where the light seemed to be coming from, and then walked over to where it seemed to pointing. Yet as she reached it, she found herself surrounded by the little shadow creatures from before. The sword appeared suddenly in her hand as Kairi ran toward the first in her reach and slashed at it ferociously until it disappeared into a burst of black fire. The rest of the shadows huddled together as they began what seemed to be some kind of group charge. Kairi could hardly help smirk as three wide swings of her sword defeated the entire group at once.

She straightened, confident now that all the little shadows were gone. Kairi turned their attention back to the beam of light, but this time it had moved. It was no longer on the boy's face. It had moved downward, and then created a circle imprint. The outline looked like white fire, ever burning and seeming to grow stronger all the time. Kairi ran toward it, dropping to her knees as she reached it. Kairi stretched one hand into the circle and, feeling nothing out of the ordinary, stepped inside it. She was starting to think that she and Riku were on some kind of training mission. Either that or a wild goose chase.

As they stood there, waiting for the voice to speak up before Kairi forgot it, the beam of light moved again. This time it went all the way over the edge, and as soon as it did so, a series of square stained-glass platforms appeared, making a sort of stairway up to another place. Kairi were pretty sure that it was another stained-glass image platform. They looked around, and seeing that there was nothing more to do on that platform, they ran toward the stairway and hurried up it, careful to not slip and fall into the pit of darkness that surrounded them on all sides.

The brilliant yellow glow of this particular platform was the first thing that Kairi saw. And there, right in the middle, just like all the other platforms before it, was a boy. Another blond, this time wearing some kind of uniform. He was quite handsome, but just behind him was the face of a young girl. Yet, both of them looked quite peaceful-neither of seemed afraid or anger. Forming a around them were the silhouettes of various people: women, men, and even cat-like people.

Kairi pushed the thoughts out of their minds and looked that beam of light. They found it just above the center of the platform. They smiled slightly as they stepped toward it, curious now, as it wasn't running away. They stepped underneath the light and gazed up at where it seemed to come from. And then the voice that Kairi'd been waiting for made its presence known.

_The closer you get to the light, the greater your shadow becomes._

Kairi was no longer sure if the voice was being cryptic or literal. Though confusion reined over her, Kairi slowly turned around to look at her shadow. Sure enough, there it was. Darker then she'd seen it before, reaching all the way from the center of the circular platform to the very edge. Her shadow turned slightly to face her, adjusting itself so that it looked like it was lying down on the floor, so it was looking at Kairi straight in the eye.

Kairi's heart stopped for a second. She hadn't done that.

Then suddenly, the shadow began to pull itself up out of the floor. Kairi stepped back in alarm, starring as it began to change its shape. It had at first looked just like her, but now its hair stretched reaching out from its scalp, some of which chose to wrap itself around the creature's head. Two eyes began to glow yellow from deep within the mask of dark tentacles. Its fingers stretched and sharpened into sharp black claws. Its feet became smaller, curving inward as you followed it to the toe. Kairi stepped slowly backward.

_But don't be afraid._

A giant-shaped hole appeared in the chest area. Kairi could see right through it. "My God." Kairi said to herself. The shadow had grown to immense proportions. It loomed over Kairi, dark and menacing, staring down at her with glowing yellow glows. Kairi took small steps backward, one hand held slightly upward, hoping that it would see she didn't want to fight it. But somehow, Kairi felt that she was about to.

_And don't forget…_

Kairi's eyes widened in fear as the creature completed itself. Kairi stumbled backward, gasping in terror, trying to escape. She ran, still staring over her shoulder at the giant shadow creature. It was just standing there, as if it were waiting. She continued to run, but nearly slipped over the edge. She'd forgotten. There was no way out. She was on a large circular platform floating in darkness. Where could they possibly run? She began to teeter on the edge of the platform, but thankfully managed to shift her weight on back onto the platform. A look of despair appeared on Kairi's face. Kairi swallowed hard and spun around to face the creature. Kairi had no choice but to fight it. She stared at the monster as it straightened itself to its full length.

It…was…_huge._

She gripped the sword tight in her hands, and then ran forward the shadow. Its gigantic frame grew as she came closer, becoming more and more frightening as she approached. But Kairi had learned a long time ago to swallow her fear. Kairi ran at the nearest available limb of the creature-its right hand. Unfortunately for Kairi, the hand seemed to be creating a purple energy sphere. Its first attack, evidently. Kairi didn't care. She followed the hand at all costs, as if they had a lock on it. Even when the creatures raised into the air and then slammed it onto the platform. The purple energy had disappeared as a black patch had appeared underneath its palm.

The hand was resting on the ground. An opening! Kairi leapt in the air; sword raised, and began to swing wildly at it. Her swings didn't seem to do anything to the creature, but she had to keep trying. She slashed the fingers and the palm furiously, and followed that hand everywhere it went. She wouldn't let it get away from her.

Suddenly, Kairi felt a sharp pain at her back. She spun around and saw some of the little creatures from before surrounding her. So that's what the giant had been doing: pulling little helpers out of the platform. Bastard. Kairi slashed at them, too, pushing them further from her, then returned to the Black Hand. She leapt at it when it was high above her head, and swung her sword at it with all her strength when it was level with her. She didn't think about the little black creature, though they were attacking her from behind and weakening ferocity of her attack at the giant hand. It seemed to be luck that they moved themselves in the way of her sword and were attacked as well. And every time they disappeared, Kairi felt her energy return.

Eventually, all the small shadows had vanished, but the giant had other means of attack. From the heart-shaped hole in the being's chest appeared a huge glowing sphere of purple energy. Even though her alarm, Kairi didn't stop attacking the beast. Even when the energy sphere shattered into pieces and all those pieces came after her, Kairi did not hesitate in her blitz. Even though every muscle in her body had told her to run, they had merely jumped into the air in order to keep her attack rolling.

She was starting to think that this battle was going to be hopeless. She switched her focus from hand to foot and back to the hand. Nothing seemed to be working. The giant continued slamming his fist into the floor, making it ramble to the point where Kairi would lose her footing. The giant didn't even seem to notice that it was being attacked. And that's when Kairi remembered. The creature's face! She'd read in a book somewhere about how the face would always be the weakest point on the fighter's body, since the muscles in the face couldn't be built, no matter what kind of training was endured. Kairi jumped up onto the creature's arm and began to run up toward the monster's face, clutching the sword tightly in her grip.

"Hey, _ugly_!" Kairi yelled as she reached the monster's face. "Your _face _is _wide open_!!"

Kairi screeched to a halt in front of the monster's face. The head began to move slightly, acknowledging Kairi's presence. She raised her sword high into the air and then swung the blade swiftly downwards, the blade slicing across the giant's face, right between the eyes. The creature roared in fury, everything seems like it was going in slow motion; Kairi had won.

Kairi slid down the monster's arm, planting her feet firmly on the stained glass platform and then spun around to face it. She moved quickly backward, away from the creature for the first time. She had won, but the giant hadn't disappeared yet. It was still standing there, still looming over her. Kairi clutched the sword tighter in her hands, waiting for something to happen, when the sword suddenly vanished with a white light. She gasped in shock-she was weaponless! And the monster was still alive! Kairi wanted to run, but she remembered where she was-a circular platform. Even so, she had to get away from the giant shadow monster. Even just being out of its reach would be enough.

She leapt backward again when the creature lashed out at her, swinging one mighty hand in an attempt to knock her off the platform. The shadow slammed his other hand down onto the platform as well, causing a great rumble in the ground beneath Kairi's feet. The creature had fallen to its knees and glared at Kairi with those terrible glowing yellow eyes.

Kairi's knees suddenly gave way, and she tumbled and fell onto the ground. Kairi felt all her fear return. She was powerless. She couldn't swallow the fear anymore. It felt like she was going to throw up all of her terror. She stared up at the creature, terrified, still trying to get away even though she was sitting on the ground. Kairi kicked her feet, pushing the ground to help her get away, when suddenly she felt a familiar texture on her hands and legs. She risked taking a glance at the floor and was horrified by what she saw. It was one of those dark patches from the blue platform! One had formed underneath her! Her heart began to race, feeling like it was going burst from her clothes.

The monster stared down at Kairi, those yellow eyes gleaming as though everything had gone according to its plan. She squirmed under the giant's gaze. Those horrible glowing yellow eyes…

_But don't be afraid._

Too late.

Kairi tried to escape from the dark blotch that was below her, but this patch was different. Instead of slowly pulling her under like quicksand, it was reaching up to her with dark tentacle like things and holding her down. Along with its black tendrils was something that resembled black fire and smoke, curling around her limbs and holding Kairi down just as firmly as the tendrils. The smoke and tendrils first began to wrap around Kairi's legs, engulfing her in darkness. They seemed to hold her tightly; it even felt like a series of cold, soft hands had taken hold of her. Kairi struggled under the feeling of it. She clenched her teeth, holding back a yell of frustration and terror.

The monster was still there, still glaring at her, but doing more then that. Its malicious glowing eyes burned into Kairi. Kairi's mind raced. She could do nothing more than to stare back at the monster, but…that malicious stare…

Suddenly, the creature raised itself so it was almost standing upright. As though it was planning to do something. Like delivering a final bow.

_You hold the mightiest weapon of all._

The voice seemed to be trembling.

Kairi had finally managed to roll onto her stomach, even though those dark tendrils had wrapped around her entire torso. She tried to crawl over and grab the edge of the platform, but it wasn't working. She could barely gain more than a few inches. Kairi stretched her arm out, but her hand couldn't reach the edge. Then the dark tentacles and the black fire began to grab hold of that hold. Now all of Kairi's limbs had been caught by that dark stuff. There was nothing more she could do.

_So don't forget…_

The voice was definitely shaking.

She found herself slowly starting to sink into the dark patch as the tentacles began to engulf her. She turned around, checking to see if the giant shadow beast was still there. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped when she saw it there, still looming over her. It was leaning downward as though it was going to crush Kairi with its body. Kairi's eyes were wide with terror, begging for mercy. No. She didn't want to die here. Not here. Not in this bizarre place. No. Not here. Never here. Anywhere but here.

Black tendrils of fire and smoke reached up and began to wrap around Kairi's face.

"_Cold…and dark…so dark…"_

_You are the one…who will open the door._

The sound of water crashing on the beach shore had slowly filled her senses. She opened her eyes and stared up at the blue sky. The large white clouds rolled lazily across the blue expense. She shielded her eyes from the sky as she stared up. It looked like midday, but she couldn't really tell.

'_The sky's blue today…'_

She switched her attention from the sky to whatever was lying in front of her. She pushed herself into a sitting position and propped herself up with her hands. It was the ocean. A great expense of beautiful blue ocean lying out before her. No mainland in sight. She smiled sleepily and yawned, than laid herself back down to get some more sleep. She lay down, finding herself suddenly lying in some shade. She lazily opened her eyes and looked up. Her view of the sky was obstructed by a boy.

"Whoa!"

She sat straight up, all her chains jingling at the sudden movement. Still on her knees, she turned herself around to her friend, her exposed knees rubbing against the beach sand. Both friends began to laugh at each other.

"Gimme a break, Sora."

Sora giggled, tucking a loose turf of his spiky light brown hair behind his ear, and then stared straight into her companion's face, still grinning as though he knew she'd done something wrong. His ocean blue eyes were still laughing as he spoke in a tone that sounded just like a mother's.

"Kairi, you lazy bum. I knew that I'd find you _snoozing_ down here."

Then he turned away, as if he were shunning her for her wrong doing, his nose lifted snobbishly in the air. He looked back at Kairi out of the corner of his eye, waiting for her to laugh at his imitation.

"No! This huge, black _thing_ swallowed me up!" Kairi began to explain. The adrenaline had suddenly begun to run through her body, just like it did at the end of her dream. She tried her best to recall everything she'd seen, every detail, her blue eyes burning through the ground as she struggled to find words to explain. "I couldn't breathe, I couldn't-"

A hand dropped onto the top of her head. "Ow!" Kairi raised one hand and rubbed her new bruise.

"Are you still dreaming?" Sora laughed, dropping the false mom act. He leaned forward and stared straight into Sora's face.

"It wasn't a dream!" Kairi protested. But her words caught in her throat. "Or… was it? I don't know…" Kairi looked down at the sand, suddenly confused. Had it been really a dream? But it had felt so real… She then looked over her shoulder, toward the ocean, as though its deep depths held the answer to all his questions.

"What _was_ that place?" she murmured, mostly to herself. "So bizarre…"

"Yeah sure." Kairi looked up at Sora in surprise and slight dismay. He didn't believe her…?

Sora had given up making fun of Kairi – for now. He walked causally toward the shoreline, and stopped just a few inches from where the water receded from the shore. Sora looked up at the sky at first, gazing at the white clouds as they rolled by. And then he turned to stare out to the horizon, as though he also believed that there was some big secret out there that he just had to know.

Kairi turned her attention to Sora. "Say, Sora. What was my hometown like? You know, where I grew up."

She shifted her position so she was no longer kneeling on the sand (the texture was starting to hurt her knees) and turned slightly so that she was still facing Sora. She propped herself up with her arms, her gaze never drifting far from him.

He smiled at the question. "You've told me before, you don't remember."

"Nothing at all?" Kairi sounded suspicious, and almost doubtful of his answer.

"Nothing." Sora had answered as if didn't bother him one bit.

"Do I ever wanna go back?"

"Mmm…Well, you're happy here." Sora's smile deepened as the words came out.

"Really…" She was still doubtful. Kairi finally looked away from Sora and stared out over the horizon, just like he was.

"But you know," Sora continued with a little giggle, "I wouldn't mind going to see it." He smiled at the thought.

"I'd like to see it too," Kairi replied, fixing her gaze back on Sora and resting one arm on her knees. She grinned at her thoughts. "Along with any other worlds out there. I wanna see 'em all."

Sora giggled as he turned to face his friend with a nod. "So what're we waiting for?"

"Hey, aren't you guys forgetting about me?"

Both Kairi and Sora turned around. There, standing with a log tucked one arm, was another boy. He was taller than both Kairi and Sora. He had shoulder length sliver hair, that stuck just about everywhere (but in the most stylish manner) and green eyes that were almost neon in color. He was well built for a fifteen-year-old, and held the thick log as though it was nothing. Sora grinned. He'd known this guy since…well, as far back he could remember. He and Riku had grown up together.

"So," Riku continued with a shake of his head, "I guess I'm the only one working on the raft."

Riku glanced at Kairi with a slight smile, and tossed the log to her as he walked over to Sora. Kairi yelled in surprise as she tried to catch it… and failed miserably. Riku laughed slightly than looked right at Sora, straight into his innocent blue eyes.

"And you're just as lazy as _she_ is," Riku finished, accusing Sora as he motioned toward Kairi.

Kairi made a face at Riku as she pulled closer the log to her.

Sora giggled. He put one hand behind his head in an embarrassed gesture, and feigned a wince as Riku spoke. "So, you noticed," he laughed, a sheepish grin spreading across his face. "Okay, we'll finish it together! I'll race you!"

"Huh?!"

Kairi had seated herself on top of Riku's log, and looked up at Sora as though he was craziest person she'd ever met in her entire life. There was no way she was going to race both Riku and Sora after she'd just woken up.

Riku had seated himself down in the sand next to Kairi. And then, as though Riku had read Kairi's thoughts, he yelled out, exhausted that he'd been doing all day – alone, as it turned out. He rolled his green eyes so he was looking up at Sora, the only one still standing.

"What, are you kidding?"

Sora paid no attention to their protests, and merely laughed at their expense. He then cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone. "Ready, _go_!"

The boy and the girl exchanged glances, then suddenly leapt to their feet and began to run along the shoreline as fast as they could. Riku looked over at Kairi, his face filled with laughter. Kairi, on the other hand, looked absolutely determined to beat Riku in this race. Riku almost laughed at Kairi's seriousness, and finally looked straight ahead. If Kairi was going to try to win, then so was he. Sora laughed the entire run across the beach, bringing up the rear of the so-called "race". He couldn't stop laughing at them as he made his way toward the "boat ruins" on the other side of the island. Both Riku and Kairi were way ahead of him, the two of them being neck in neck.

Kairi finally looked over at Riku. The boy and the girl looked at each other as they ran for a moment, and then suddenly, both grinned at each other, as though there was some kind of joke just the two of them shared, and then continued their race. Kairi's grin grew even bigger, the mysterious dream pushed out of her thoughts. Then the boy and the girl looked back at Sora, both of them grinning, and began to call out his name and urge him to run faster.

There was only this moment. This eternal summer that had been granted to the three of them in the form of an island paradise. There was only now. There was no door. No darkness. No mysterious voice. This place…

These were the Destiny Islands.

The passage to Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Aerith and Hermione don't look like Donald and Goofy, they're human. And in case you're wondering, King Mickey Mouse will be played by Harry Potter. 


	2. Destiny Islands

Finally, one chapter is finished! I'm already working on the second chapter, might update the story twice today. But I'm so happy, I got Dirge of Cerberus yesterday! Yay! The games rock!

* * *

Chapter 1

_Destiny Islands_

"So, can you gather the rest of the supplies?" Sora asked Kairi, putting his hands behind his back and giving her his sweetest smile.

She blinked, confused. What? Kairi put one hand behind her head, looking up into the tree benches as she tried to remember what it was that Sora was talking about.

His face twisted ever so slightly in anger. He leaned forward, getting up into Kairi's face, his meanest, angriest face having replaced his smile. "Kairi, are you listening to me?"

Kairi looked back into his face; blinked once or twice, and then smiled, letting out a light, care free laugh. "Sorry, what was that again?"

Sora's face twisted as to himself look meaner (though it didn't work very well), then let out an exasperated sigh. He shook his head sadly at Kairi. "Geez. We can't build a raft without materials right?"

He then took a few steps forward and began to pace back and forth as though he was a general in the army, giving orders to the soldiers. Kairi sighed helplessly. She crossed her arms behind her head and smiled at Sora.

"Here's what we need." He then faced Kairi and began to list, using his fingers to number them. "Two logs. One cloth. One rope." Sora smiled again, putting his hands behind him once again. "Bring everything back here. If you need help, just ask." He then winked at Kairi and gave her a thumbs up. "I'm counting on you!"

Kairi nodded in reply and began to hurry away. Sora smiled as he called after her.

"No more slacking, okay?"

She could've laughed at how military he had seemed, not to mention the motherly call that had come after. But now was no time for that. She had to hurry up and find all those supplies for the raft. What had been the first?

Her footsteps slowed as her eye caught on something jutting out of the sand by the edge of the water. One log. Kairi grinned and walked toward it, bending over to scoop it up into her hands. Her grin widened as she tucked the log under one arm.

"One log down, one more to go!" Kairi said aloud with a laugh as she raced away to find the rest of the materials.

The entire layout of Destiny Islands was embedded in Kairi's memory so well, that she knew exactly where to find all of Sora's demanded supplies. Right smack in the middle of the island was a large tree that was, in most places, hollow. They had built a series of wooden platforms all around it, jutting out of the side of the tree. There were two levels of platforms, connected by a wooden ladder. The top level had a railing around it so as to prevent anyone falling from it.

The cloth was in the hollow of the tree that had been made as a hideout for when it rained and they didn't want to stay in the shack that they had built on the beach. Kairi climbed up the various ladders to reach the hollow. Nobody was inside, so obviously no one was going to need the cloth. She pulled the white cloth down from the wall and wrapped it around the log.

"Hmm," Kairi murmured as she turned the cloth into a simple bag. "Why did we ever put a piece of cloth up here in the first place?"

Kairi shrugged, turning on her heel and heading back outside of the hollow. She slid down the ladder and jumped down from the first level platform to the ground. But as she did so, she misjudged the distance from the edge of the rock and ended up slipping on some moss and falling face first into the sand. Kairi pulled her face out of the sand, spitting out the grains that ended up in her mouth and wiping them off her face.

"Wow, that was a real spill, ya?"

She turned around to face the speaker, rising slowly to her feet. There stood one of the boys from her dream. he stood with his volleyball tucked one arm, putting his weight all on one leg, giving him an almost cocky stance as he smiled at Kairi. Kairi found it surreal to be seeing him now after the strange dream she'd had. She shook her head slightly to the side and then grinned at him.

"Hey Wakka," she replied, reaching for the log and cloth that had landed a ways from her. She put the log back into the makeshift bag and threw it over one shoulder.

Wakka grinned and pointed at the log. "What's that for?"

"It's for our raft," Kairi replied with a smile. "Sora's orders," she added with a wink.

Wakka laughed heartily, throwing his head back. "I won't ask any _more_, then. I know how that boy is. He thinks he owns the island or somethin', ya?" He tossed his volleyball up into the air then caught it on one finger. He then gave Kairi a mischievous look, his smile deepening.

"So… You up for a round?" He held out a wooden sword for Kairi and winked.

Kairi laughed lightly, taking the wooden sword from Wakka and dropping the log and cloth on the ground near a rock. She was kind of in a hurry, but…how could she turn down a challenge from Wakka?

"Sure, let's play."

"Play is for kids," Wakka told her. "This is serious."

Kairi smiled, crossing the sand so that she and Wakka stood opposite of each other, dragging the sword as to make a line in the sand. Wakka moved toward his position on the beach as well. He laughed from the other side, and yelled, "Show me your stuff!"

With that, Wakka threw his volleyball toward Kairi, who merely stepped out of the way, propping her wooden sword up on one shoulder. She laughed at Wakka, who had to run over and pick up his ball before he could resume. Kairi stood ready to receive, having figured out a way to "help" Wakka with getting that ball of his back.

As Wakka spun around on his heel, ready to serve the ball again, Kairi grinned, "Gimme your best shot!"

"Oh, you're gonna eat those words, Kairi!" Wakka yelled, rearing back and throwing the ball with all his might.

Kairi struck the ball right back at Wakka with her sword, who yelled in alarm as the ball headed straight for him. The ball flew right back into his hands, but the impact had sent Wakka in a state of confusion. Dizzy and disoriented, he began to throw the ball randomly in the air. Kairi shouted out as one just missed her head. She then grinned, picking up the ball. She tossed it straight up in the air, and, using her sword as if it was like a baseball bat, smacked the ball toward Wakka. The ball hit Wakka right in the chest this time and knocked him off his feet.

Kairi gasped, dropping the sword into the sand and hurried toward Wakka. "Aw, man, are you okay!"

Wakka grinned up at Kairi dizzy. "Man, that really _hurt_," he murmured with a smile, admitting defeat. He recovered quickly, shaking off the dizziness and getting up onto feet. He laughed lightly and held his hand out toward Kairi. "That was a good match, ya?"

Kairi sighed with relief and shook Wakka by the hand. "Yeah, great match."

"Still no match for Riku though, ya?" Wakka said, taking his hand back.

Kairi's smile faded slightly at the words. "Yeah, I guess not." She pushed the thought away as she picked up the wooden sword and tucked into her belt. She turned and grinned at Wakka as she continued on her little mission to gather stuff for the raft. "See ya later, Wakka!"

_Still not good enough for Riku, huh?_

The next item Sora had asked for was a rope. She knew where she could find one of those.

At the edge of the island there was another large tree. It was half on the island and half in the water. It wasn't as big as the one in the center of the island, nor was it hallow. Because of that, they'd built a platform in the big depression between the branches. It too, had a small railing on the sides. Nobody wanted to end up falling into shallow water. But to reach the platform, one had to climb up the ladder. It wasn't extremely long ladder, but it was most certainly one of the longest on the island.

Kairi jumped back up onto the gravel platform and headed toward that area. She knew for sure that she'd find a rope there. With the log wrapped in the cloth over one shoulder, Kairi grabbed hold of the rungs and began to climb the ladder as quickly as she could. She scrambled over onto the wooden platform and headed toward the flat that they had built there.

It was when she was standing in the center of that wide platform that Kairi realized. This was where she had been in her dream. This was where she had been interviewed. Her eyes grew wide as she remembered seeing the three of them, and their strange, hard, cold eyes…

She shook the memory off and headed for the rope that she could see lying on the ground just in front of her. Kairi grabbed the rope and tucked it into the bag, then spun on one heel. She was shocked to find Tidus up on the platform as well. He was practicing swinging around that red stick of his.

It was weird seeing him right after the dream as well, just as it had been with Wakka. There he was, with his shorts that were longer on one leg then the other and his yellow and white jacket. Kairi grinned.

"Hey!"

Tidus stopped swinging for a moment and turned around slowly to look at Kairi. He swiped the sweat from his brow and smiled, running a hand through his spiky dirty blonde hair.

"Hey Kairi!" Tidus's grin widened even more as he clutched the red staff in his hands, a challenging look coming over his face. "You feel lucky today?"

Kairi laughed, throwing the materials she'd gathered over her shoulder. "Not now, Tidus, maybe some other time."

Tidus made a face. "Come on, Kairi, be a man!"

"Hey, I'm kinda busy right now," Kairi replied with a sigh. "I'm on a mission. Sora's orders."

Tidus laughed at that, folding his arms over his chest, a mocking gleam in his eye. "Oh, so it's like that, huh?"

Kairi cast a death glance over at Tidus, which soon turned into lopsided smile. "Tomorrow, okay? I promise!" She then spun on her heel as she resumed her little mission. Tidus cupped his hands over his mouth and called after her, "Why would you want to cross the ocean? Sword fights beat that _any_ day!"

She laughed at the comment, casting one final glance in Tidus's direction, and then slid down the ladder as quickly as she could. She was just about to head back to Sora when she caught sight of Selphie sitting at the edge of the dock. Kairi grinned mischievously to herself as she quietly snuck up behind her, doing her best to not make the wooden planks of the deck creak. She wasn't very far in front of her now. Just a few more steps. Kairi's grin deepened as she got ready to grab her by the shoulders…

"Don't… even."

Her face fell as she turned around, her short auburn hair swishing into her face, with happy little grin on her face. "Hey Kairi!" she chirped happily. "What're you up to these days? We never see you."

Kairi shrugged helplessly, adjusting her hold on the cloth bag. "We've been busy."

Selphie frowned slightly, putting on her puppy dog face.

"Come on, tell me what you're planning," she said, somewhat sadly. And then suddenly her face changed, her eyes growing slightly wide and her gaze switching from Kairi's face to a blank stare. "Actually, never mind." She looked back up at Kairi and smiled. "I'll find out on my own."

She could hardly help but laugh. "Alright then, Selph. Catch ya later!" Kairi jumped down from the dock into the sandy beach. She turned around slightly and winked. "Off to do some 'top secret' business!"

Selphie's face twisted angrily. "Hey, no fair!"

Kairi's laughter echoed down the beach as she headed back toward where Sora was waiting for her, the bag of materials bouncing on her shoulder as she ran. She hopped up toward Sora, holding the bag out for him. He turned to look at her from where he was leaning against the doorway and smiled. "Hey, that was quick! Thanks, Kairi."

He took the bag from her with both hands and peered inside, making sure of the contents. "Let's see what's still missing?" His face brightened as he remembered, his head snapping upward and her gaze turning back to Kairi. "One more log!"

Kari sighed. "One more log?"

Sora smiled. "That's right! Come on, Kairi, I'm counting on you!"

How could she refuse when he put it that way? "Alright, I'll find it."

She spun around and walked back onto the beach, toward the shack. One more log? Where could she find another log…? She smiled as the memory returned to her. Kairi pushed open the door of the shack and hurried up the stairs. After all, there was nothing inside that shack except for those stairs. She opened the door at the top and stumbled back outside. Here, there was a bridge that led over to a part of the island that stuck out like a plateau. It wasn't too far from the main part of the island. It was still perfectly connected to the rest of the island. But they liked to consider it as this unusual little dot on the side of it, since it was separated by some water.

She was almost sure that she'd seen a log here before. Kairi hurried across the wooden bridge and grinned as she caught sight of the log sitting on the edge. She hurried over toward it, but just as she was about to grab hold of it, she heard a voice coming from behind her.

"Hey, Kairi!"

She turned slowly around and saw Riku sitting on the truck of one of the trees. The tree was bent over, so it was perfect to relax on. They were never able to figure out what happened to it that it swerve the way it did, but no one ever complained. It was the perfect seat. And there Riku sat, one knee pulled up close to him and his arms propping him up in his sitting position. "Did you get everything we need for the raft? I already gave my stuff to Sora."

Kairi smiled. "Well, I need this last log."

Riku grinned. "That can wait a little while longer. How about a quick round?"

Suddenly Kairi remembered what Wakka had said earlier about Riku. And something inside her began to boil over. Kairi's smile turned slightly vicious as she grabbed onto the hilt of her wooden sword.

"Okay, you're on!"

"This one decides the champion!" Riku said with a grin.

Riku hopped down from his seat on the bent tree trunk. He and Kairi glared at each other as they headed toward the center of the plateau, swords in hand. They stood facing each other, Kairi already in her battle stance, her sword gripped in two hands. Riku stood as cocky as ever, still fiddling with his sword slightly, tapping the edge of it into the palm of his left hand. His smile deepened as he watched Kairi with his green eyes.

"Ready or not!" he taunted.

Kairi could feel herself shake slightly. She wasn't sure if it was rage or fear, but she could feel the blood pumping in her ears. All she could hear was Wakka's words, repeating over and over again. It felt like both a challenge and a curse. And all Kairi knew at that moment was that she did _not_ like the idea of always having to be second best to Riku.

She clenched her sword tightly between her hands and watched Riku's every move very carefully. Riku made the first move. He leapt high into the air and landed right behind Kairi. Kairi's eyes widened and she hurried out of the way as Riku got ready to swing his sword. Kairi ran forward as Riku took his swing, missing her only slightly. Kairi took advantage and hurried right back, charging at Riku with her sword, swinging the wood with all her might. But Riku was just too quick. He swung his sword backhand, as though it was tennis racket, countering Kairi's blow. Kairi gritted her teeth at the backslash of the countermove. She refused to give in.

She swung her sword again, this time lower. Once again, Riku continued his move. But this time, Kairi had been ready for it. She kept the sword's movement going and brought the sword back into an overhead swing. It stuck Riku in his shoulder. Riku grunted in pain, stepping back slightly. Unfortunately for Kairi, Riku was quick to recover. Riku swung his sword toward Kairi, managing to scratch the material of Kairi's shirt as she jumped away.

Kairi backed up slightly, then turned on her heel and ran to get some distance between them. The two then faced each other, the tips of their swords pointed at each other as they circled. Kairi gritted her teeth and launched herself forward, swinging at Riku furiously. Riku blocked every one of her moves. He smiled.

"You still don't got it," he said with a short chuckle as he pushed Kairi back.

She could hardly stand those words. Kairi narrowed her eyes at Riku as he got ready to charge again. Kairi ran straight for Riku, her sword ready. Riku only smiled at the charge, already set to deliver another blow. But as Riku took his swing, Kairi jumped up and over Riku's head, turning slightly in the air and stuck Riku in the back.

Riku stumbled forward, shocked. He looked over at Kairi, his eyes wide in surprise. Kairi could hardly help but smile. Her smile seemed malicious. "Come on," she taunted, pleased with herself.

Riku smiled back, turning around. "Now it's _my_ turn."

Kairi gritted her teeth and clutched her wooden sword tightly in her hands. She didn't like the way Riku had said that. It sounded mocking. And then her ears began to roar with the sound of Wakka's voice, telling her that she would always be second best to Riku. Kairi charged forward and jumped over Riku's head. Kairi spun in mid-air and stuck him again, but this time Riku turned around so that he fell onto his back. And as Kairi planted both feet on the ground and spun to face Riku, she ended up with an unpleasant Chinese get-up kick to the gut, which ended up knocking Kairi off the plateau and into the water below.

Kairi surfaced with a loud gasp for air.

"Still not enough, Kairi!" Riku called from above. "You still need a little more training!"

Kairi's face fell as she pulled herself out of the water and began to climb the ladder back up to the plateau. Riku grabbed Kairi's shirt and helped her pull back topside. They looked at each other full in the face for a long, silent time before they both burst out laughing, their faces deep red. Riku pulled Kairi into a headlock and gave her a friendly noogie before releasing her and they both continued to laugh out loud. As soon as they had calmed down, Kairi tossed the wooden sword to one side and plopped down into a cross-legged position. She then looked up into the sky.

"Man… now the score's zero to one," Kairi sighed.

Riku grinned. "Better luck next time," he told her, giving Kairi a pat on the back. He then reached over and picked up the log, holding it out for Kairi. "Here. Better get this back to Sora, huh?"

Kairi gazed at the log and grabbed it hesitantly. She looked up at Riku and smiled to cover up her disappointment. "Yeah, I'd better."

As Kairi rose to her feet and headed back to Sora, Riku seated himself back on the trunk of the bent over tree. He watched Kairi intently as she jumped from the bridge to the beach below and ran to where Sora was still waiting. He then turned away and chuckled slightly to himself, a slight blush on his face.

Kairi handed the log over to Sora and then continued to squeeze the water out of her shirt and skirt. Sora took the log from her and titled his head to one side. "What happened to you?"

She looked over at him and smiled. "Nothing, don't worry about it."

Sora smiled knowingly, one eyebrow raised. "You and Riku went at it again, didn't you?"

She froze and said nothing. She merely grunted in response. That boy was awfully perceptive sometimes. Sora shrugged it off and put one hand on Kairi's shoulder.

"Thanks, Kairi!" He then began to reach into his pocket. "I found something today, too. Here, it's yours." He grabbed Kairi's hand and put a bottle labeled "Hi-Potion" into her palm. "Considering your little spat with Riku, I guess you're gonna need it."

Kairi smiled slightly and put it away. "Thanks, Sora."

Sora smiled, putting his hands behind his back. "Tired? Want to call it a day?"

"Yeah, let's go home," Kairi said with a stretch.

"Okay," Sora replied with a slight giggle. "It _is_ getting late. We'll finish up tomorrow."

* * *

The three sat together watching the sun set from the plateau, as they usually did before returning home. Kairi and Sora were seated on the trunk of the bent over tree, while Riku leaned against the base. They merely sat and gazed at the horizon as the cloud and ocean turned orange and red as the sun began to vanish beneath the waves. Each of them lost their own thoughts. 

Sora was the first to speak.

"So, Kairi's home is out there somewhere, right?" he asked, turning to look at his friends.

Kairi smiled to herself, continuing to look into the sunset, swinging her legs back and forth as they waited for Riku to answer. His eyes were firmly on the vision of the setting sun, his arms folded over his chest. There wasn't even a hint of a smile on his face. He didn't even look at his friends as he answered.

"Could be. We'll never know by staying here."

"But how far could a _raft _take us?" Sora prompted, leaning forward a bit more.

"Who knows?" Riku said with a slight gesture of his hand. He folded his arms once again. "If we have to, we'll think of something else."

"So, suppose you get to another world," Kairi began with a giggle. "What would you do there?"

"Hmm. Well, I haven't really thought about it," he answered haltingly, still refusing to look at either Kairi or Sora. "It's just…"

Sora turned his attention back to the sunset, rocking back and forth as he sat on the tree trunk. The whole raft thing was Riku's idea in the first place. Though Sora was curious to hear what Riku had to say, he decided that if Riku didn't want to look them in the face as he spoke, then he didn't really want to either.

"I've always wondered why we've here, on _this_ island," Riku continued. "If there _are_ other worlds out there, why did we end on _this_ one? And, suppose there _are_ other worlds… Then ours is just a little piece of _much_ greater. So, we could have just as easily ended up somewhere else, right?"

Riku turned to look at them for the first time. Sora turned slightly, looking over at Riku out of the corner of his eye, then shrugged and leaned back onto the bent tree trunk. He put his arms behind his head and dangled his legs over both sides of the trunk, starring up at the sky where dark blue met orange.

"I don't know," he said nonchalantly.

Kairi looked over at Sora, an almost exasperated look on her face. Riku smiled slightly at Sora's action and returned to the horizon.

"_Exactly._ That's why we need to go out there and find out." Riku took a few steps forward, his hands dropping down to his sides. His green eyes seemed to glow as they remained fixated on the fiery sunset that bathed the entire island in an orange glow. "Just sitting won't change a thing."

As Kairi listened to Riku, she looked up into the sky, smiling and shaking her head from side to side as though she'd heard the story a thousand times. Sora let out a sigh and rolled his head so that he was looking out into the horizon. He still didn't understand Riku, after all these years. He was always searching for something bigger, while Sora had always been fairly content with what they had. What difference did any of it make?

"It's the same old stuff," Sora heard him say. "So let's go."

"You've been thinking a _lot_ lately, haven't you?" Kairi said, looking over at Riku. The tone in her voice was so solemn that Sora wasn't sure whether or not it was really her.

Riku turned around and looked Kairi full in the face. A slight smile crossed his face as he looked at her. "Thanks to you."

Sora's eyes widened slightly and his jaw dropped open. His head rolled slightly so that he was looking over at Kairi and Riku. For a moment, he thought he ought to say something, but he couldn't think of a single sensible thing to say. He watched them warily for a moment, and then reluctantly returned his attention to the blazing sun.

"If you hadn't come here," he could hear Riku continue, "I probably would've never thought of _any_ of this. Kairi, thanks."

Kairi smiled slightly at Riku and nodded. "You're welcome."

Sora walked in front of them all as they began to walk toward the boats near at dock, ready to head back to the mainland and join their families for dinner. Kairi dragged her feet, kicking into the holes between the planks of the bridge. She didn't really like going home, but then again she was pretty hunger. She looked at Sora. What about herself? She didn't remember much about her home life. She didn't think that she lived with her family anymore. If _that_ was the case, then…

"Kairi!"

She turned at the sound of her name, looking back where Riku was. Riku smiled as he tossed a star shaped object at her. Kairi managed to catch it clumsily and cradled it in her hands, examining it carefully. It was a yellow star shaped fruit, clearly freshly picked, since parts of the vine was still sticking out from some of its points.

"You wanted one, didn't you?" Riku asked, pointing at it.

"A paopu fruit…?"

She looked up at Riku, confused. She'd wanted one? She couldn't remember ever asking for one. What was Riku thinking?

Riku smiled as he resumed walking. "If two people share one, their destinies become intertwined. They'll remain a part of each other's lives, _no matter what_."

Kairi gazed at the paopu fruit intently, hooked on the story Riku had just told her. Maybe… she did want one… Riku laughed slightly to himself as he reached the end of the bridge, glancing over at Kairi.

"C'mon, I know you want to try it!"

Now maybe it was the light from the sunset, but Kairi's turned slightly red. "What're you talkin'-"

Riku laughed at Kairi, interrupting her sentence as he continued toward the docks. Kairi looked first at Riku, then at the paopu fruit. Riku's story began to repeat itself in her head.

'_If two people share one, their destinies become intertwined…"_

She stole a glance in Sora's direction, and then immediately returned her gaze to the fruit.

'_They'll remain a part of each other's lives… No matter what…"_

Kairi let go a long breath. It was just a legend. There was no need to get so worked up over a legend about a fruit. Just because it was shaped like a star. It wasn't like that _meant_ anything. She slowly shifted the fruit into her right hand, and then, taking one last long look at it, hesitantly tossed over the edge of the bridge.

'_H-How stupid,'_ she thought to herself angrily.

And with that, Kairi took off in a run.

After she ran off, a sphere appeared, surrounding it was a pink light, inside the sphere was some sort of creature, it tilted its head as it watched Kairi run to the docks, but instead of seeing the fourteen year old girl, it saw a frightened eight year old girl, surrounded by three boys, one had spiky brown hair, another had short sliver hair, and the third boy had short black hair. A slight smile appeared on the girl's face; together the four ran off somewhere. The sphere disappeared to a new world.

* * *

**A/N:** Mew was the creature in the sphere, and it'll play an important part of the story. Something frightened Kairi in her past, so Sora, Riku, and a unknown boy comforted her, and they run to someplace together. I'll maybe reveal that unknown boy later in the story. Next chapter the last two Heroines and their lives before they met. View my profile for the videos and dream avi verisons of their different appearances. Mew is the only pokemon I really like. 


	3. The Plot Thickens

I'm majorlly sorry about the long wait for the update of this story! A early present for all who liked this story! Oh, how ironic, Zack's pokemon is a rock type and its name is Rocky. Don't why Hermione has a Vulpix, why Aerith has a Eevee, or why their names are Sakura and Eve. Merry Christmas! Characters belong to J.K.Rowling and SquareSoft. Storyline, plot belong to me!

* * *

Chapter 2 The Plot Thickens 

_Hogwarts Castle_

The castle's towers stretched up toward the sky as though it was reaching for the clouds. The entire castle seemed to glow. The light brown stone of the castle and black titling on the cone shaped towers glimmered in the brilliant sunlight. The many colored flags that decorated the castle façade, jutting out from the peaks of the towers, flapped in the light morning breeze. The day was just about perfect as usual.

As usual, the court witch walked down the long hallway toward the throne room, her footfalls falling evenly on the red carpet that stretched all the way to the end of the hall. To her left, the wall was lined with windows that almost reached the high, arched ceiling. Pouring in from the windows was the bright light of the early morning. This was the court witch's cue to greet the king.

The court witch was in fact tall young woman. Atop her head was a black hat, similar in shape to that of a stereotypical witch. The point was teased into a crude curlicue, and all along the rim of the hat was a thick gray line. Long wavy dark brown hair was pulled up into a long ponytail surged by a red ribbon. A pair of deep chocolate brown eyes shining with cheerfulness. She wore a long sleeveless black-gray shirt, with two dark gray buttons in the middle of her chest, held securely to her body by a blue-gray belt that went her waist, and the pair of black pants she was wearing. Over the sleeveless shirt was a black cloak, which actually looked like a long sleeved robe. It was a long back robe with a small red hood, leading to the back of her black booted feet.

She tipped her hat and nodded as she passed by some servants as they scurried down the hall toward the next place that required cleaning. The girl chuckled to herself as she heard them walked further and further down the hall. Then suddenly she stopped short, planting both her booted feet before turning on her heel to the right, where she stood facing a set of giant brown double doors. On either door was a symbol consisting of a lion, standing on its hind legs and its front paws ready to attack, the king's emblem. The door stretched up in its great white lined archway until it reached the ceiling. There was no way for a small woman to open them.

The court witch smiled to herself, lifting one loosely clenched fist towards her mouth as she cleared her throat. She then knocked on the base of the doors five times, rhythmically, as though to a song that no one else could hear but her. A slight clicking sound was made from the other side of the door as the girl dropped her hand to her side, and a small section of the giant door popped open for the court witch to step through.

The throne room was huge, able to fit possibly hundreds of guests at a time. But for now, it was empty. The tiled linoleum floor glimmered with their fresh polish, clean and spanking new. The only thing laid out on top of the floor was another long red carpet that stretched all the way from the double doors to the throne. Above the throne was red tapestry, outlined in yellow, that once again bore symbol of the lion. Intricate cravings in the wall directly behind the throne. On either side of the throne were statues, one of the court witch and the other of the captain of the guard, the king's two best friends in the world.

The court witch walked triumphantly down the length of the carpet, as though she was a soldier returning from war and visiting her great king. She was barely even halfway to the throne when she bowed toward it as she walked, in greeting to his royal highness.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," she called out in her clear feminine voice.

She continued her march down the long red carpet. She was going to have to reach the throne if she was going properly greet the king. As she approached the throne, the girl smiled to herself and bowed slightly once again. "It's nice to see you this morn – What!"

As the court witch raised her head to look up at where the king should have been sitting, she realized with great shock and horror that he wasn't there. The court witch froze. What would she tell the others? The queen, the servants, all the king's friends? Just then, the king's faithful dog popped out from behind the throne, holding delicately between his teeth. The court witch looked at the dog, shocked.

"What are you holding there, Sirius?" the girl asked out as she bent over to take whatever it was from him.

It was a small light green envelope that bore the king's symbol, the lion. The court witch carefully opened the envelope and pulled out the letter within. She slowly unfolded the letter and began to read, her eyes going hurriedly over each line, taking in the meaning behind the writing. The girl blinked once or twice, slowly lowering the letter so that it fell out of her line of vision.

Suddenly, all control over her lost, the girl spun around and ran out of the throne room, screaming and waving her arms as though the world was about to an end. She knew exactly where to go. She had to tell the captain of the guard!

As it happened, the captain of the guard was resting on the lawn of his own little castle. Of course, it wasn't a real castle; it was a model of the entire Hogwarts Castle, which had been shaped out of the large bush that had been growing in the garden. From that castle grew many different flowers, positioned in such a way that they would create a multi-colored spiral with the castle placed in the center of it. The entire circle was separate from the other bush sculptures in the garden, all placed around a large circle. That castle was in the center of the entire garden.

It was on the lawn that the captain of the guard was taking his nap. He was still dressed head to toe in his armor, as for his hamlet, which sat on top of his head as a hat since it wasn't able to cover all of his flaming red hair. He lay on the flowers with one leg perched over one knee and his arms folded casually behind his head. His mouth would open wide as he slept and snored peacefully in the garden.

Right at that moment, the court witch rushed in, running in a crooked line toward the captain, still waving her arms like (though she had finally stopped screaming). She hopped on the flowerbed and screeched to a halt next to the captain, waving her arms frantically to maintain her balance.

"Wake up, Ron, _wake up_!" she screamed, jumping around frantically. "This is _serious_!"

Ron merely moaned in his sleep and then let out a long slow breath. A carefree smile appeared on his face as he slept. The girl began to grow furious. With a loud scream, she pointed one finger toward the sky, her eyes fixated on Ron, releasing a jolt of lighting into Ron's body. The zap of electricity finally awoke Ron, so much so that he just about jumped into the air with a cry of surprise and pain.

He dropped back down onto the flowerbed with a loud thud and clangs of metal, his eyes finally opened and looking around. Ron rubbed his eyes sleepily with one large, armored hand as he gazed around him, somewhat disoriented. His vision was still somewhat blurred, but it didn't take long for him to recognize the angry face of one of his best friends in the world. He smiled at her sleepily.

"Hey there, Hermione," he greeted with a wave. "G'morning."

"We've got a _problem_, Ron!" Hermione told him urgently, waving her arms around in the air. Suddenly she stopped, and looked cautiously to the left and then to the right. She then cupped one hand around her mouth and said in a lower voice, "But don't tell _any_one…"

Ron's eyes went wide. "Queen Ginny?"

Hermione put her hands on her hips, raising her nose almost snobbishly in the air. "Not even the _queen_."

Ron's expression changed slightly as he shifted his gaze. "Luna?"

The court witch shook her head furiously from side to side. "_NO_! It's top secret!"

The captain bowed slightly, his gaze having completely shifted away from Hermione's face. "G'morning, ladies," he said politely.

Hermione froze. "Wh-What?"

She slowly turned around, afraid to see her fears come true. And as she did so, her heart stopped beating for just a moment. For there, standing under one of the many bush archways of the garden, were Queen Ginny and Luna. Hermione swallowed hard as they stared at her and Ron expectantly, Luna putting her hands on her hips and narrowing her eyes slightly. She cleared her throat and raised one eyebrow, her gaze fixed exactly on Hermione's face.

Ron turned to look at Hermione, somewhat bewildered, as a nervous laugh escaped from Hermione's throat.

From one of the towers, the sphere watched the court witch walked the queen back into the castle, but it saw the court witch carried a young girl with dark red hair on her back. A worried look on her face as she walked with an older woman with long wavy brown hair in a braid. It disappeared to another world.

* * *

_Kalm Village_

The sun shone brightly down on the village of Kalm, the streets were busy with people as usual, through the crowds the sphere flew unnoticed by the people. It flew as though it was looking for something or someone. The creature inside looked around, until the sphere reached a young couple.

A man with spiky black hair that reached his waist and deep brown eyes was talking to a woman with long wavy light brown hair in a braid and bright emerald green eyes; in her hands was a woven brown empty flower basket. A large sword was strapped to the man's back.

"So, you're back late again, Zack?" the woman said.

"Yeah, Aerith, make yourself some dinner and wait for me," Zack told her.

Aerith nodded and waved as she watched Zack walk away. When she saw nothing of him in sight, she turned and walked down the street. The sphere followed slowly behind her, after turning a corner, Aerith looked around to the left, then to the right. Then she pulled something out of a pocket of the pair of pants she wore under her dress.

It was small doll, with spiky blonde hair, wearing some kind of uniform. Aerith gently ran her hand across the face; a small smile appeared across her face. She held close the doll to her chest, tears streaming down her face.

"Cloud…" she whispered, looking at the sky. "I miss you. I wanted you to know I'm your light. But your heart is surrounded by darkness. Darkness caused by Sephiroth, because you believe you couldn't protect me. It's not your fault."

She put the doll in her pocket, and started walking again. Twice she looked behind her to see if anyone was following, but saw no one. Aerith shrugged her shoulders, and continued walking toward her favorite place in the village. She ran a hand through her light brown wavy hair.

Aerith opened the door to an empty worth down church, well worth down wasn't really the best word for it. Most of the church was still perfect condition, such as the benches and the stained glass windows. There was a hole in the roof of the church, letting the sun from the outside shine in and on a small flowerbed where a alter would be. Yellow and white flowers stood in the garden.

The flowerbed looked brand new, the flowers stood neatly, the colors from the stained glass windows colored the floor, the benches lined up perfectly, only a few in the front were crocked.

Aerith smiled, walking up to the garden. She wasn't sure why, but she always thought of her first meet with Cloud whenever she came to her church to tend her garden. At times she thought she saw Cloud standing into the garden, his arms wide open for her.

She kneeled on her knees and dug a small hole in the flowerbed, pulling out a bright green stone on a chain. Smiling, Aerith wrapped it around her neck, and then she started to pick flowers and put them in her basket.

The sphere watched the flower girl talking to the court witch and the dark red hair girl on some another world. The creature inside closed its eyes, and vanished back to the islands.

* * *

_Destiny Islands_

Another perfect day in paradise.

Kairi hopped up onto the docks from her boat as she put her hands on her hips and breathed in the summer sea breeze. She stretched for a moment and then spun around slightly, staring up at the sky through the leaves of the trees. Kairi then heard a voice.

"Hey, Kairi!"

She turned to look at the speaker and saw Selphie standing on the edge of dock. She smiled at her warmly.

"Hey, Selphie."

She smiled back at her and came a bit closer, looking both ways before she began to speak, as though she had some big secret to share with her. She leaned forward slightly as she opened her mouth.

"Have you heard about the legendary power of the paopu fruit?"

Something inside Kairi jumped.

"They say if you share it with someone you _really_care about," she continued matter of factly, "it binds you together forever and ever, through _eternity!_" Selphie sighed dreamily, her eyes glazing over as she seemed to forget about Kairi's presence. "It's so romantic, I gotta _try_ it sometime."

Kairi smiled faintly, putting one hand on her shoulder. "Well, you tell me how that works out, alright?" she told her with a laugh, turning on her heel to go.

There was something mischievous in Selphie's smile as she replied. "Why, are you thinkin' about tryin' it?"

She began to quicken her step when the words came out of Selphie's mouth. She chose not to answer. If ever she asked her why, she'd just say that she hadn't heard her. That was fair enough, right?

"If Sora doesn't share a paopu fruit with you soon, Riku might beat him to it," Selphie called after her.

Kairi's heart skipped a beat. She did her best to ignore Selphie's comment as she hurried up to the first level platform around the big trees.

They had agreed to meet up near the boat ruins today. That meant the other side of the island. She knew a shortcut, rather than having to go through that door all the way on the other end. There was little cave that she could take to get there fast. Kairi pulled herself into the cave and hurried through, slightly bent over so as not to hit her head on anything. She popped out on the other side of the island, elevated so that she was level with the tops of the "small" forest of palm trees that grew in the shade. Directly next to Kairi stood was a small barren tree that had a large yellow star stuck on the trunk. Kairi grinned at the tree, placing one hand absentmindedly on its surface

Just next to the small forest was where they started to build their raft. And that's where it still was. Kairi hopped onto the top of one of the palm trees and shimmed down its trunk to reach the ground. She then ran straight for Sora, who stood expectantly on the raft, looking for Kairi and Riku. Kairi grinned and waved.

"Sora! Over here!"

He turned at the sound of his name and gave Kairi a huge smile. "Look!" he exclaimed, gesturing toward the raft.

The raft was just about finished. All the logs had been tied securely together to make the bottom of the raft. The mast jutted out from the center of the raft and stretched up toward the sky, the cloth that Kairi had gotten the day before stretched out to make the sail. Kairi smiled proudly as she gazed at it.

Sora's smile grew. "The raft's almost done! All we have to do is load it with food!"

"Sounds good!" Kairi said with a grin. "Riku must've gotten here early and worked on it, huh?"

At that, Sora's smiled faded slightly. "Hey… have you seen Riku?"

"Oh, come to think of it, no," Kairi murmured slightly, taking a cue from Sora to look around. She grinned. "Don't worry, I'll find him."

She then took off for the other end of the island, jumping up onto a rock and then clambering onto the stone plateau. This side of the island had more rocks than the other. But it was the perfect racecourse. Directly on Kairi's right hand side was a large wooden tower. It had a long ladder leading up to the top, where there was a rope tied to one of the planks that tied to another, smaller wooden tower on the other end of the island. Attached to that rope was a wooden slider that they could grab onto to glide across.

There was a rickety old bridge right in front of the tower, leading in the other direction over a small section of water toward the doorway that led to the other side of the island. Some of the planks of the bridge had rotten through and fallen off, making large gaps in it. Kairi looked across the water and squinted. There, standing near the edge, looking out into the horizon, was Riku. Kairi smiled. Riku'd been doing that an awful lot lately. She began to make her way across the rickety bridge.

She raced across the bridge, hopping over the gaps. She remembered one set of planks was just about ready to break off. But when Kairi finally remembered which one it was, it was already too late. The platform broke off as she shifted her weight onto it, taking her down into the water below. Kairi tumbled into the salty water as the planks broke on the stones. She lifted herself out slowly, shaking the water out of her dark red hair. With a defeated sigh, Kairi trudged through the water and pulled herself up onto the stone platform where Riku stood.

She looked up at Riku and grinned. "What're you doing all the way over here?"

Riku gave a start, as though he'd been in a deep trance, and then turned to look at Kairi. "I was just thinking that our raft still needs a name," he told her. He put one hand thoughtfully under his chin for a moment. "Let's see…How about Highwind?"

Kairi grinned. For some reason that name sounded rather familiar. She wasn't able to place it, but she was sure that she's heard it somewhere else. "Naw, not Highwind."

"What would _you_ call it?" Riku wanted to know, folding his arms over his chest.

"Me? Well… hmm…" Kairi tapped the side of her head thoughtfully. Then her face stretched out into a grin as she looked back at Riku. "Oathkeeper!" Kairi shouted excitedly.

A challenging gleam appeared in Riku's green eyes. "Hey, 'bout how…"

"The usual?" Kairi finished, the same competitive gleam in her own blue eyes.

"Lets do it!"

Just then Sora appeared stepped onto the gravel platform with a smile. He put his hands behind his back and gave them a knowing look. "You guys at it again? All right, I'll be the judge." Sora turned slightly with a giggle and pointed in the direction from which he came. "The same rules apply: Take any route you want. First one to tag the tree with the star and make it back here wins."

Kairi turned to Riku as they took their places. "If_ I_ win, I'm captain…" she told him cheerily. "And if _you_ win…"

"I get to share the paopu with you," Riku said solemnly, without even looking at Kairi.

"Huh!"

Riku smiled mischievously at Kairi. "Deal? The winner gets to choose who share the paopu with."

Kairi's eyes widened, panicked. She looked away, her mind racing. Share a paopu with Sora? That meant… So then Riku wanted to… But what if Kairi lost…? "W-Wait a minute…"

Sora, having taken his position as referee, turned to the boy and the girl. "Okay, on my count."

Riku leaned into the position that professional racers got into at the start of a race. But Kairi's mind was still in a whirl. What was she going to do? It was too late to back out now!

"Three!"

The countdown had already begun!

"Two!"

She had no choice.

"One!"

She had to win!

"Go!"

Sora dropped his hand as though it was a flag.

The boy and the girl sprung forward at the signal. They were evenly matched-for now. Kairi glanced at Riku as they turned the corner onto the bridge. She considered nudging him slightly out of the way… She shook her head slowly, pushing the thought out of her mind. Kairi turned her attention to the old wooden planks. She frowned slightly. It was too bad that she'd already broken off the rotten blanks. Kairi could have used that to lose Riku.

Riku and Kairi hopped over each gasp in the bridge, both of them still perfectly matched. Kairi clenched her teeth, determined to win. She looked forward and stared up at the tower. It would probably be the fastest to use the slider. Kairi extended one hand and grabbed onto one of the rungs of the ladder before Riku could and swung herself onto the ladder, climbing as quickly as possible. Riku slowed for a moment, glancing up at Kairi. It slowed him down, but most certainly wouldn't make him stop.

Kairi hurried up the ladder. It was definitely a very long ladder to have to climb, but Kairi couldn't stop. She scrambled up to the top, pulling her up onto the platform. She grabbed onto the wooden slider with both hands and pushed off the tower with her feet. She tucked her legs in as she slid down the rope so she could go faster. Below her she could see Riku running toward the incline, his arms pumping at his sides. Kairi made a face and began to swing her legs in an attempt to speed up.

As she began to approach the second wooden tower, Kairi swung forward and released the slider, sending her flying through the air. She rolled as she hit the ground, and then scrambled back up to her feet as Riku was just about to pass her. Kairi groaned. No fair. They ran up the slope, jumping from one stone to the next. Both of them extended one hand to touch the star on the tree. Their hands touched it at the exact same moment, and both the boy and the girl looked at each other. Kairi grinned before taking off, jumping down into palm tree forest. As she landed in the sand, Kairi rolled back up on her feet and ran as fast as she could to where Sora was waiting for the boy and the girl to arrive.

She jumped back up to the stone platform, nearly slipping on a patch of moss near the edge, and then leapt into the water with a big splash. She struggled through the water as quickly as she could. Kairi could see Sora. She was practically there already! She could hear Sora cheer excitedly. Kairi smiled, reaching forward to grab onto the edge of the platform. She pulled herself up so she was standing right next to Sora, her smile growing as she realized that she had won. Sora screamed excitedly, pulling Kairi in a hug and then began to jump up and down.

"Congrats, Kairi!"

Kairi grinned, her face slightly pink. She then turned to Riku, who had just arrived. "Now the score's one to one!" she laughed, almost mockingly.

Riku gave Kairi an almost malicious look. "Man, lighten up. It's just a name, after all."

Kairi looked at Riku, shocked for a moment. She narrowed her eyes, screwing her face up in frown. How could he have done that to her….?

Sora looked at the boy and the girl in turn, and then giving them his best smile in an attempt to lift their spirits. "Anyways! Today, we collect provisions for our trip!" Sora turned to Kairi, putting his arms behind his head. "Let's see. Kairi, you're looking for one seagull eggs, three mushrooms, two coconuts, three fish, and…." Sora reached into his pocket and pulled a clear bottle. He pushed it into Kairi's hands, closing her fingers around it. "And fill this up with drinking. But not from the ocean!"

Kairi put the bottle away, glancing at Riku one last time. "Alright, I got it."

"Bring everything to the boat ruins," Sora said as he began to walk away. "I'll be over there, okay? If you need help, just ask."

The coconuts were probably the easiest to get. All Kairi had to do was whack the trunks of the coconut trees a few times until a ripe one fell to the ground. And since the trees were so close to the raft's building site, Kairi merely dropped them down near the base of the mast.

As for the mushrooms, Kairi knew that there were a few growing on this side of the island. She managed to scrape up two mushrooms; one had been growing in a small cave near the boat ruins, but Kairi had had to move a boulder in order to get inside. The other grew among the plants near the base of the large wooden tower. Those were also quickly returned to the raft. Kairi set them down nicely near the coconuts.

Kairi had to get into the water in order to get the three fish. For some reason, she couldn't find any in the cove, so she had to return to the other side of the island to find them. And since Kairi didn't have any fishing gear on him, she'd had to catch them with her bare hands (no easy task). Selphie had a lot of fun watching Kairi swim around, trying to grab hold of the fish. In the end, she gave him a small net and a bag for her to keep them in.

The drinking water was also very easy to obtain, since on that side of the island, near the base of the big hollow tree, was a small waterfall and pond of fresh water. All she had to do was open the bottle and fill it up. The bottle of water was placed carefully into the bag with the fish.

It was possible that Kairi had the hardest time getting hold of a seagull egg. She didn't even know where to begin to look for a seagull egg, as she had no idea where the seagulls nested. She probably climbed to the top of every tree on the island in order to find it. And when she did find the egg, she was surprised to see how big it was. Unfortunately, there was only one. Kairi sighed and placed the egg into the bag with the water and fish.

She returned to the boat ruins. Sora was leaning against the mast of the raft, fiddling with a knife and his wooden sword that Kairi could see in his hands.

Kairi smiled. "Sora!"

He didn't look up. He merely smiled. Kairi tilted her head curiously to one side and came closer. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Just sharpening my sword," he said. Turning to Kairi, he asked, "You made something the other day, right?"

"This?" she answered, raising a long piece of thread with a series of white and yellow shells hooked into it from her pocket. "I made a necklace of thalassa shells. In the old days, sailors always wore thalassa shells. They were supposed to ensure a safe voyage."

Kairi grinned. "Don't worry, Sora," she said confidently. "With or without them, we'll be just fine."

Sora smiled slightly. "You know I don't believe in fairy tales, Kairi?"

She merely shrugged in response. Then, remembering, she held the bag out for Sora. "Here's the stuff we need."

Sora smiled as he took the bag from her with both hands. "Hey, that was quick! Thanks, Kairi. Let's see, what's still missing?" He inspected the bag and looked over what Kairi had placed at the base of the mast. "One more mushroom!"

Kairi groaned. "Another mushroom?"

Sora giggled to himself. "You have this habit of forgetting just the one more item on the list," he told Kairi. "I know you can find it, Captain!" He saluted Kairi playfully. Kairi looked confused.

"Don't you remember, Kairi? You won the race and named the raft! And since you named the raft, doesn't that make you captain?"

"Oh yeah," Kairi murmured. That had been her condition. If Kairi won the race, then she'd be captain, and they'd name the raft Oathkeeper.

"Then from now on," Sora said with a laugh, "I'll say 'Aye, aye, Captain Kairi!'"

Kairi laughed. "Okay, Sora. I'll go find that last mushroom, so you stay right here."

Sora smiled. "Aye, aye, Captain Kairi!"

Easier said than done. Kairi didn't even know where to begin to search for another mushroom. She turned to Selphie for help, but all she could talk about was the paopu fruit, and who she should share it with. Kairi shrugged and left. She jumped down from the dock and looked around for someone else to ask. Her eye caught on the figure of Tidus, still practicing with that red staff. Only this time, he was practicing where Riku and Kairi had had their little spat the day before. Kairi made his way up to the top of the plateau as quickly as she could. "Hey, Tidus!"

Tidus turned around and looked over at Kairi, wiping the sweat from his forehead. He smiled and waved, and then continued with his practice.

"Hey, Kairi," he said with a grin. "I think you've gotten stronger, but odds are you're _still _no match for _Riku_." Kairi twitched at the words. "We took him on _three-to-one_ last time, and he whipped us all. Well, I guess Sora can always count on him."

Kairi's face fell. "Hey, listen, Tidus, you wouldn't happen to know where to find some mushrooms, would you?"

"Say, are you and Riku really pals?" Tidus went on, as though he hadn't heard Kairi's question. "It's kinda hard to tell sometimes." Then Tidus lowered his weapon and looked over at Kairi. "Anyway… Let's go a round, Kairi!"

Kairi sighed. Tidus had completely ignored her question. There was just no helping how air-headed Tidus could be. "One-on-one?" Kairi prompted. "Sure! I did promise you, right?"

Tidus grinned and nodded. Kairi walked over to where she had left her sword the day before and took it into her hands. "And I always keep my promises. Bring it on, Tidus!"

"Hey, no problem. I can take you down myself!"

Kairi and Tidus got into their positions atop the plateau. Tidus grinned as he ran forward and swung his staff with all his might. Kairi blocked the blow with her sword and then moved around so she stood behind him. She struck Tidus in the back, sending him forward, almost causing him to hit one of the trees face first. Tidus spun around and swung his staff again, but Kairi jumped out of the way. He then did a somersault kick in the air, which Kairi just barely managed to dodge. Tidus grinned as he followed up with a swing of his staff, striking Kairi in the side. Kairi slid to the side, clutching the bruise on her side and wincing.

As Tidus made another charge, Kairi pulled the same move she had with Riku before; jumping over her head and turning mid-air to strike Tidus in the back. Tidus stumbled forward and rolled over the edge of the platform. Kairi put her sword down and peered over the edge of the plateau.

"Y-You okay?" she called down.

Tidus shook the water out of his hair and looked up. He waved at Kairi with a smile and then hit himself lightly on the head. "Aw, man… What's up?"

Kairi smiled slightly, and then wordlessly took off. She still had a job to do. She was still looking for that last stupid mushroom. Kairi raced across the bridge and hopped onto the roof of the small wooden shack. She glanced around. Mushrooms grew in dark places… Kairi jumped from the roof to the fresh water pond, where Wakka was standing with his volleyball tucked under one arm. Wakka looked at Kairi as she landed and smiled.

"Hey, Kairi! You seen Tidus?"

"Yeah, he's back there." Kairi pointed at the plateau then looked at Wakka curiously. "Why?"

Wakka smiled mysteriously at his reaction, turning toward the tree and pointing at a crack in the rock at the base of the large hollow tree. The rock surrounding it was overgrown with moss and other kinds of leafy vegetation. It was dark and musty looking. As Kairi followed Wakka's gaze, her eyes widened.

"Me and Tidus," Wakka said, "we're gonna do a little explorin' today. You know, to the secret place at the base of that tree. There's gotta be _somethin'_ there, ya?"

Kairi's eyes still wide, she nodded in agreement. "You're right," he said slowly as a smile crept onto Kairi's face. She turned to Wakka and patted him on the arm. "Thanks, Wakka!"

And with that, she hopped up toward the cave. Wakka looked confused at first, but then shrugged it off and turned back around to face where Tidus was. Kairi bent over as he passed through the crack in the rock and then carefully rose to her full height when she reached the other side. She followed the tunnel wall with one hand as she walked, staring up at the gnarled roots that could be seen inside. The tunnel led to one very special place.

Sora, Riku and Kairi had never told the other three kids about their secret place. They had claimed the place as their own several years before. Right below the large tree was a fairly large hollow cavern. The walls were all rocks piled on top of each other, held together by the long, twisted roots of the tree above. Kairi and Sora had been scratching drawings onto the rocks for the past few years. They had drawn castles and imaginary underwater places, with mermaids and fish. They had pictures of strange creatures and girls that wore beautiful necklace and transformed. There were drawings of strange smiling faces, hearts, diamonds, spades and clovers. There was even a picture of a ghost-like shadow creature looming over a small group of people

.They were never able to explain why they had drawn the pictures that they had drawn. There was nothing to connect them together, but they were all over the cavern. Every rock had a drawing of some kind etched into its surface It made the place all the more special, the way they saw it. But the most mysterious and wondrous thing that could be found there was the strange door.

Or at least, it looked like a door. But there was no handle or keyhole to be found on it anywhere. All they knew was that, even though it seemed to be made of wood, it never rotted or decayed. The gold embroidery on the door's surface never faded. It always looked brand new, even though it had been there for as long as Riku and Sora could remember

.Kairi smiled as she spotted a small mushroom nestled between the roots of the tree near the mysterious door. She walked over and pulled the mushroom out, inspecting it, and then tucked it into her belt with a grin. As Kairi was about to rise to her feet, she spotted another one of the drawings. It was a particularly special drawing, to her anyway. It was an etching of her and Sora. Kairi had drawn Sora, and Sora had drawn Kairi. They weren't the best artists in the world, so the drawings weren't very good, but Kairi still loved it best of all.

She put one hand affectionately on the image of Sora's face, remembering the day that the two of them had scratched the images onto the rock about a year and a half before. Kairi smiled faintly, taking a sharp rock into her hands. He then seated herself on the ground and began to etch something new into the rock, just below the image of Sora's face. The rock whitened with every scratch she made, and small, dust-like pieces of the rock rained slowly down to the ground from the stone's surface.

Kairi pulled away, gazing at her new etch, content. She smiled at the image. For there, near the sketch of Sora, was something that looked like a shooting star. But if one looked close enough, they would realize that it was actually an arm, leading from the image of Kairi's face, holding a star close to Sora's mouth. Kairi touched the star, smiling.

As she stared at the image, Kairi heard a noise from behind her. She turned around and rose to her feet. "Wh-Who's there?" Kairi stammered.

Standing in the shadows beneath one of the tree's roots was a strange person in a long brown overcoat. The hood was so deep that the face of whoever it was got lost in the shadow. A deep voice boomed from within the darkness of the figure's hood.

"I've come to see the door to this world."

"Huh?" For some odd reason, the figure felt so very familiar to Kairi, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

"This world has been connected," it continued.

"Wh-What are you talking about?"

"Tied to the darkness…" It was as though the cloaked person couldn't hear Kairi's questions.

"Soon to be completely eclipsed."

Kairi narrowed her eyes, clenching her fists. "Well, who_ever_ you are," Kairi told him, finding her voice, "stop freakin' me out like this." Her eyes widened in a sudden realization. "Huh? Wh-Where did _you_ come from?"

The figure never moved an inch. "You do not yet know what lies beyond the door."

Kairi glanced at the door to her side. Her heart began to race. "So,_you're_ from another_world_!"

"There is so very much to learn. _You _understand so _little._"

"Oh, yeah," Kairi said, her voice growing as she challenged him. She narrowed her eyes at the hooded figure. "Well, _you'll see._ I'm gonna out there and_ learn_ what's out there!"

"A meaningless effort," came a voice. "One who knows nothing can understand _nothing._"

She thought to say something biting, but nothing came out of Kairi's mouth. She merely glared at the hooded figure for a while, waiting for him to say something. After moment of silence, Kairi slowly turned her head to look at the door, her eyes burning holes into its surface. She had seen a hundred times before, and this time was no different. She scrutinized it for a brief moment and then turned quickly to look at the figure.

But she was all alone.

* * *

Kairi returned to Sora and handed him the last mushroom. 

"Thanks, Kairi! I found something today, too. Here, it's yours."

Sora pulled out a Hi-Potion and handed it to Kairi. Kairi laughed as she took it from him. "Is this all you ever have for me, Sora?"

He screwed her face up in an attempt to look mean. "Hey, no complaining, Captain!" Then, as though he just couldn't hold it back anymore, Sora smiled. "Tired? Wanna call it a day?"

"Yeah, we should get home soon," Kairi said, slowly glancing over her shoulder as though expecting something to be there. She then looked up into the sky, noticing that it had suddenly gotten darker.

"Okay!" Sora said with a giggle. "Tomorrow's the big day! We should rest up!"

Both Kairi and Sora walked together toward their boats, but as Sora was about to jump into his boat, Kairi walked toward the end of the dock and sat down, dangling her feet over the edge. Sora tilted his head slightly to one side, confused, then walked over and sat next to her.

They sat in silence for a while, looking out toward the horizon at the sunset. The water glimmered in the orange light as the sun was just beginning to sink and set the sky aflame.

Sora leaned back, propping himself up with his arms as he stared out into the sunset. He smiled slightly as he watched the water gleam in the failing light.

"You know, Riku has changed."

He looked over at Kairi curiously. Her face was solemn, her hands folded in her lap, her eyes lowered slightly. The seriousness in her voice had surprised him.

"What do you mean?"

She shut her eyes slowly, taking a deep breath, and then slowly looking up into the sunset. "Well… hmm…"

Sora kept his gaze on her face. "You okay?"

Kairi looked over at Sora, a faint, cheerful smile on her face. "Sora, let's take the raft and go – just the_ two_ of us!"

Fortunately for Sora, the orange tint of the sunset covered up his red face. "Huh?"

She looked away quickly, returning her attention to the horizon. She giggled, rocking slightly back and forth. "Just kidding."

Sora looked away slowly, also gazing into the fiery sunset. "What's gotten into you?" Sora asked her, his voice shaken with nervous laughter. "_You're _the one that's changed, Kairi."

Her face was solemn again, her eyes having once again lowered so that she was staring into her lap, at the hands that clutched her knees tightly. "Maybe." She leaned forward, putting her weight on her hands, her eyes lifting toward the sunset again. "You know, I was a little afraid at first, but… Now I'm ready! No matter _where_I go, or _what_ I see, I know I can always come back here."

She looked at Sora with a smile. "Right?"

He looked back at her, slightly taken aback, and nodded. "Yeah, of course!"

"That's good," she said quietly, looking into the sunset again. She rubbed the palms of her hands on her knees. She took a deep breath. "Sora, don't ever change."

"Huh?" He watched with wide, alarmed eyes as Kairi rose to her feet. What… did that mean?

"I just can't wait," Kairi said, even quieter than before, putting her arms behind her back. "Once we set sail… it'll be great."

Sora leaned back, looking back out into the sunset. Once they set sail…

They didn't know the creature in its sphere was behind them, and behind it were two people. They watched the eight year old girl with the three boys watching the sunset, but the silver haired boy looked nervous with the others. The raven haired boy whispered something in the girl's ear, but she grabbed his hand and ran off. The two other boys followed, the silver haired boy smiling as he ran. One of the figures turned to the other figure.

"She knows nothing anymore," it said in a feminine voice. "She doesn't the friendship you had, the moments you shared, or the promise…………….."

"But yet her hidden memories live in these," the other said, holding up a white feather with a marking on it. "So, what now?"

"Nothing, right now….." the first figure said, as they disappeared with the sphere.

* * *

_Dear Hermione,_

_Sorry to rush off without sayin' goodbye, but there's big trouble brewin'._

_Not sure why, but the stars have been blinkin' out, one by one._

_And that means disaster can't be far behind._

_ I hate to leave you all but I've gotta go check into it._

_There's someone with a "key" the key to our survival._

_So I need you, Hermione, to find her, and stick with you. Got it?_

_We need that key or we're doomed! So go to Traverse Town and find Leon._

_He'll point you in the right direction._

_P.S._

_Would you apologize to Ginny for me? Thanks, Mione_

* * *

_ Hogwarts Castle_

"Oh, dear! What could this _mean_?"

Ron, Hermione, Luna, and Queen Ginny were all gathered in the castle library. The king's dog Sirius was asleep in his bed on the floor near the desk, from where the queen had been reading the letter aloud to the others. Hermione bowed her head slightly in dismay, putting her hand solemnly together. Ron stretched the back of his head, somewhat confused by what just happened. The queen put the letter down on the desk, smoothing it over the surface, and rose to her feet.

"It means we'll just have to trust the king," she told Luna faithfully, walking around the desk to stand next to her.

Ron placed one finger thoughtfully on his lips. "Geez, I sure hope he's okay."

Hermione looked up at Queen Ginny, putting a fist over her heart. "Your Highness." Ginny turned to look at the court witch. "Don't worry," she told her proudly. "I'll find the king _and_this 'key'."

The queen smiled at Hermione. "Thank you," she said sweetly. Then, after she looked toward Ron, she turned to Hermione again, "Thank you very much, Hermione."

The court witch lowered her fist and turned to Luna. "Luna, can you take care of-"

"Of course." The lady-in-waiting smiled and nodded. "You be careful, Hermione Granger."

"Oh," Queen Ginny said quietly, the word escaping from her lips in a loud gasp. Her eyes drifted back toward the table. "And to chronicle your travels, _he_ will accompany you." The queen gestured toward the desk.

Hermione blinked, confused. She couldn't see anyone. All she saw was the desk and everything that the king had left on its surface. That is, until something began to jump into the air from the table top.

"Over here!" came a small voice.

The voice belonged to a small cricket that stood near the edge of the desk. He stood upright on his hind legs; his feet slipped into a pair of shiny black and white shoes. He wore a small black tuxedo over his white blouse and red vest. On the top of his head was a traditional top hat, light blue in color, which he tipped to greet Hermione.

"Cricket's the name," he said with a bow. "Jiminy Cricket at your service."

"Also, you'll need to take your Vulpix," Ron told Hermione.

The court witch nodded, putting her fingers in her mouth, she whistled for something. Coming into the room was a small fox with six tails, it had light red fur on its body; expect the curls on its head, its six tails, and paws were dark red. It ran to Hermione, rubbing its head against her leg.

The queen turned back to Hermione. "We hope for your safe return. Please help the king."

Hermione straightened and put her right hand over her heart in salute. The queen and Luna folded their hands in front of them, nodding approvingly at the court witch. Ron, who now stood next to Luna, saluted Hermione as a soldier heading off to war. Hermione glared at Ron, instantly breaking her posture as she turned to the door, waving at him.

"See you later," she almost shouted, walking to the door with Sakura. Ron quickly followed her.

* * *

"Gee, Jiminy, your world disappeared, too?" 

Hermione, Ron, and Sakura trudged down a long spiral staircase that led to where the Highwind ships were held. They weren't used often, only in emergencies, and there were only two ships. Hermione and Ron knew for sure the king had taken one on his investigation, which meant Hermione was left with the other to follow him.

They were pretty much a secret to everyone. Only a small group of people about these Highwind ships. Because of this, they were stored far below the castle, which was why Ron, Hermione, and Sakura, with Jiminy perched atop Ron's head, were walking down a very long spiral staircase. It was dark, and the only sources of light came from symbols etched into the wall that cast a dim light over the steps.

"It was _terrible_," Jiminy replied. "We were scattered. And as far as I can see, I'm the _only _one who made it to this castle."

Ron glanced in front of him. "Hermione?" he called, reminding his friend.

"Oh, right," Hermione said, remembering. "I understand. While I'm in other worlds, I can't let on where I'm from."

Ron chuckled softly. "You've gotta protect the world border."

Hermione shook her head sadly from side to side. " 'Order'," she corrected him.

"Right. World _order_." Ron let out a quiet laugh.

The girl sighed, exasperated, as they left the spiral staircase behind them and walked down a short tunnel to where a door awaited their arrival. They had just about reached the Gummi ship hangar.

"I guess you'll need new duds when you get there, huh?" Ron asked Hermione as they reached the large crown shaped door.

There was no reply from the girl.

The Highwind ship hangar looked like the inside of a clock while being fixed. There was a pair of giant mechanical white gloves that moved about the hangar attached to sliders that were in the rafters, picking items up and moving them across the room. There were giant gears all over the room, including one exceptionally large one right next to the control center. There were strangely shaped gizmos all over the room, some of which had functions unknown to most everyone. The Highwind ship was placed in the middle of the clockwork chaos, basking in its own glory.

Hermione stepped up to a yellow pipe, designed after the kinds used to communicate on sea ships. The pipe was meant to allow communication between the launch crew up in the control center and the pilots. Hermione cupped one hand around her mouth as she spoke into it.

"Hello up there?" she said. "Hermione Granger to launch crew! Anytime you're ready!"

As Hermione's voice echoed in the control center, one of the launch crewmembers eagerly gave a salute. The other engineer dashed behind the first, running to the other side of the control center, and pulling onto one of the levers, lowering it. The engineer planted both feet on the ground and spun around, trying to make sure all was in order in the hangar. It would've been a disaster if he had jumped the wrong lever.

Inside the hangar, pipes began to blow out steam and the gears began to spin even faster than before. The giant white gloves moved across the hangar to where Ron, Hermione, and Sakura stood waiting. They lowered one by one and closed their giant fingers gently around first Sakura, then Hermione, and carried them quickly over to the Highwind ship, where they were dropped into cockpit.

It was about then that Sirius ran through the entrance to the hangar and leapt gracefully from the balcony. When he landed, he slid across the flooring, straight into the ground entrance of the Highwind ship. Sirius was tucked inside the ship with a slight yelp of surprise.

Hermione got ready at steering wheel as the doorway in front of her began to open slowly. The Highwind ship's engine started up, and the entire ship began to shake, mildly at first, but slowly getting stronger and more violent. The runway on the other side of the door had red and blue lights lined all along the walls until they were engulfed by the darkness.

Queen Ginny and Luna had come down to see her off. They stepped out toward the railing, joining Ron, and looked up to where the Highwind ship had been elevated so that it was level with the now open runway. Hermione looked down and winked, giving a thumbs up signal to Ron and Luna.

The rocket engines began to spew fire as the Highwind ship was just about ready to blast off. The ship shook violently with the force of the engine. Hermione grinned, and pointed one finger enthusiastically toward the runway.

"Blast off!" she screamed excitedly.

Suddenly a red arrow that pointed down appeared in the way of the runway. An alarm began to go off. And then, as quick as lightning, the flooring beneath the ship vanished. Hermione began to scream as the ship fell and tumbled through darkness, the engines trying desperately to start up again. The ship popped out from the dark tunnel just as the rocket boosters finally kicked in. Hermione took hold of the controls. It wasn't long before the ship had vanished out of sight.

* * *

_Kalm Village_

Aerith was eating at the house she and Zack shared, on her right was a brown furred creature which resembled a fox, a white fur collar around its neck. Floating around on her left was a rock with big eyes and a mouth, on either side of it were two arms with hands in fists. As she ate, her and her companions thought they thought heard a noise.

"Is it jus me or did you two hear that, also?" she asked her Eevee, which she named Eve, and Zack's Geodude, whose name was Rocky.

Eve and Rocky nodded, Aerith sighed in relief, she wasn't the only one. Eve and Rocky were the ones of many creatures which that lived on the world Aerith and Zack lived in. Eve just chosen Aerith when she came for some reason, Rocky had been with Zack since he came to the world. Even though they got back together, Aerith and Zack weren't dating, since Zack was always busy with something, and Aerith sold flowers like she used to on another world. Eve and Aerith became fast friends.

What Aerith didn't know the sphere appeared in the world again, watching her eat with her companions? It stared at the necklace and stone around her neck, and saw her with the girls from the two other worlds, together, fighting black creatures, locking worlds, and collecting the red haired girl's lost memory. It disappeared once again, and went to the islands.

* * *

**A/N**: So enters the witch and the flower girl! The little thing about the feather is a bit of a rip-off from Tsubasa, I'll explain it in later chapters! Soon, the Heroines and their pokemon will meet! Please, R&R! 3 


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